Bishop Philippe Abbo Chen is the first native head of the Apostolic Vicariate of Mongo, in eastern Chad. During a recent visit to the international head office of Aid to the Church in Need (ACN), he spoke to Sylvain Dorient, describing a territory in the heart of the Sahara Desert, inhabited by a large Muslim …
Category archives: Africa
Nigeria-A seminarian burned to death and another kidnapped
Aid to the Church in Need International denounces the latest attack on the Catholic Church in Nigeria, in which a seminarian was burned to death in the diocese of Kafanchan, as well as the kidnapping of another seminarian in southern Kaduna. The terrible incident took place last night, around 8 p.m., Thursday 7 September, when a …
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ACN Project of the Week – Burundi
In Gitega, a vehicle for a parish run by Monfortians Burundi is one of the smallest—but most densely populated (roughly 310 to 422 inhabitants per square foot)—countries in Africa. It has an area of just under 28,000 km² and a population of almost 12 million people. In 2023, the country is considered to be the …
ACN Project of the Week – Sierra Leone
A presbytery for a new parish Sierra Leone’s recent history has been a painful one. Indeed, the consequences of the country’s bloody civil war can still be felt today. Between 1991 and 2002, half the population was uprooted and forced to flee, thousands of people were murdered, and to this day poverty, unemployment, and corruption …
Cameroon – A new cathedral for the Diocese of Maroua-Mokolo
Today, Saturday, July 8, this is the consecration of the Cathedral of Our Lady of the Assumption, in the city of Maroua—part of the Far North Region of Cameroon. This step will conclude the nine-year construction project in the heart of the Maroua-Mokolo Diocese, supported by international pontifical charity Aid to the Church in Need …
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ACN Success Story-Zambia
114 bicycles for catechists in a rural diocese Almost everywhere in Africa, priests can count on catechists who offer crucial support. Indeed, in the many geographically extensive parishes, it is the catechists who teach and help people grow in their faith, often in very remote villages. They also help prepare them for the reception of …
Democratic Republic of the Congo – The Church at the bottom of a mine
Despite the extreme poverty of its population, the Democratic Republic of the Congo is one of the main suppliers of rare minerals in the world. The Church is committed to ensuring that miners are treated more fairly. They live far from the cities and can only imagine what the ugly grey rocks they extract from …
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Religious Freedom Report 2023: persecution worsens and impunity reigns
Press Release – For Immediate Release Königstein-Montreal, Wednesday, June 21 – Pontifical Charity Aid to the Church in Need (ACN) has released the latest edition of its Religious Freedom Report (RFR), which reveals that persecution has increased since January 2021, while impunity continues to reign for attackers, including oppressive governments. The RFR has been published …
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Over 200 million dollars in donations for suffering Christians around the world
Montreal, Thursday, June 15, 2023 – Pontifical Charity Aid to the Church in Need (ACN) presents its 2022 annual accounts which reflect a year of record support. Ukraine was the largest individual recipient of help for projects in 2022, receiving almost 10% of the aid, while Africa was the region that received the most support. …
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Mozambique: Church focused on promoting interreligious dialogue in terrorist-plagued north
The Catholic Church has been playing a discrete but important role around dialogue that could effectively end the plague of terrorist violence in northern Mozambique. Father Eduardo Roca, a project partner of Aid to the Church in Need (ACN), founded the Interreligious Centre for Peace, in the Diocese of Pemba, in 2017—the same year terrorist …