By Alana Green, WACC volunteer

Fundraising continues on GlobalGiving for Radio Shalom, a station dedicated to promoting peace in Sierra Leone. WACC’s GlobalGiving Open Challenge received many responses and was championed by the Pacific region, with a donation of USD 4000 from Tahiti. “It was our way of expressing solidarity with the people of Sierra Leone,” said Linda Maea Tematua, a member of WACC’s Board of Directors and of the WACC-Pacific Executive Committee.

The Maohi Protestant Church continues its tradition of charity and generosity.

By Alana Green, WACC volunteer

As the GlobalGiving fundraising challenge for Radio Shalom kicked off April 1, members of Maohi Protestant Church in Tahiti organized a funding drive that resulted in USD 4000. It was the most raised by any group or individual throughout the fundraising challenge.  By the deadline of April 30 WACC had exceeded the target of USD 4000 from 50 donors and secured a permanent place on the GlobalGiving website to continue fundraising for Radio Shalom and other projects in the future.

The Maohi people have a strong tradition of generosity according to Linda Maea Tematua, a member of WACC’s Board of Directors and of the WACC-Pacific Executive Committee, who led the fund-raising in Tahiti. She said that every May, the Maohi Protestant Church (MPC) commemorates the founding of the Tahitian Missionary Society in 1818 by donating generously to causes at home and abroad.  This tradition began with parishioners bringing foodstuffs to help sustain the missionaries.  Later, as currency was introduced, money was donated to projects that benefited the community at large. 

Members of Maohi Protestant Church fundraising for Radio Shalom (Photo: courtesy of MPC)

By Teresia Mutuku, Communication Officer and Web Manager, WACC

On the small Pacific island of Tahiti, located over 15,000 kilometers from Sierra Leone in West Africa, members of Maohi protestant Church generously responded to a WACC appeal for support for Radio Shalom. They came together to help meet the GlobalGiving Open Challenge launched on April 1, to raise USD 4000 from 50 donors by April 30.

Led by Linda Maea Tematua, a member of WACC’s Board of Directors and of the WACC-Pacific Executive Committee, the congregation contributed a total of USD 4000, the highest donation raised throughout the fundraising challenge.

“It was our way of expressing solidarity with the people of Sierra Leone,” said Tematua. “Thanks to the grace of God and the generosity of the people of the pacific island, we managed to raise the funds,” she said.

Source: http://www.timeanddate.com/worldclock/distanceresult.html?p1=85&p2=278

Dear WACC- Caribe Members,

		WACC global has been invited to be part of global fundraising challenge to raise funds Radio Shalom project in Sierra Leone. It is a challenge to all members to help a worthy cause while providing the opportunity for WACC to collaborate with other agencies in our future fundraising efforts. Some previous messages have been sent out to members. However in case you missed them WACC is trying to meet the globalgiving challenge of raising USD 4,000 by April 30, 2012 for Radio Shalom project in Sierra Leone.
Embert Charle, Vice- President, WACC-Caribe

A project update

(source: Dominica Haule, project co-ordinator, GRAFCA)

		A workshop in rural Tanzania provided an opportunity to map a sustainable communication strategy to address HIV and AIDS related stigma at the grassroots level. The workshop was one of several components of an on-going WACC-funded project implemented by Grassroots Female Communicators Association (GRAFCA). The project recognizes the central role community communication can play in creating awareness and understanding of HIV and AIDS in rural areas. Statistics show that efforts and resources have been expended in Tanzania to raise awareness and prevent early deaths of people infected with the virus. The decline in infection rates in urban and middle class communities due to interventions by development agents and mass media has however not been replicated in rural areas.
Participants at the workshop

CEDEPCA (Guatemala) has recently concluded a three-year programme of activities aimed at combating violence against women in Guatemala and Mexico. Called “Actions against Feminicide and Impunity”, 16 training workshops were supported under WACC’s programme on communication for peace. They brought together more than 540 women of different cultural backgrounds, denominations and educational levels.

CEDEPCA is a training centre providing safe, accepting, creative spaces where women and men from many different Christian traditions can deepen their faith while they strengthen their ability to confront key issues facing their communities. CEDEPCA’s mission is to offer people the tools to eradicate violence and injustice in their world, especially violence against women and children.

Bula Vinaka and Greetings to Pacific members and friends of WACC!

I am writing to share an innovative and important global fundraising drive coordinated by WACC’s global headquarters in Toronto. WACC is participating in this GlobalGiving “Open Challenge” to raise USD 4,000 from at least 50 by April 30. So far WACC has raised USD 1,976 from 35 donors. We need more donations to meet the challenge.

Dear WACC members in Europe,

As you know from previous messages, WACC is trying to support Radio Shalom, a vital peace-building initiative in Sierre Leone and earn a permanent place on the GlobalGiving website to access new funding sources. To do this, we need to raise USD4,000 from 50 donors by 30 April. So far, we are only at USD 1976 from 35 donors. Please do support both WACC and the Radio project. with thanks and best regards, Sara Speicher Secretary, WACC Europe

This is an opportunity to express solidarity and to support Sierra Leone people’s communication rights

The WACC-Latin America President, José Luis Aguirre, sent out an appeal to personal and corporate members of WACC in the region to support the  globalgiving fundraising challenge for Radio Shalom project in Sierra Leone. “This is an opportunity to express solidarity and to support Sierra Leone people’s communication rights to build a more peaceful society”, he said.  He issued the appeal at the annual meeting of the WACC-Latin America Regional Association (CER), held in La Paz, Bolivia,  March 29-April 1. Read the appeal here… 



		The President of WACC-Asia Region  Rev. Dr. Samuel Meshack calls on wacc-Asia members to donate to the  Radio Shalom project in Sierra Leone. “This is a challenge to all our WACC members to practice what we preach on enabling people who have been denied their rights, to get their God given Rights. It is a challenge to show our solidarity with them through our action by giving what you can. As the General Secretary says, “It is an opportunity to tell the WACC story using the example of the project”, he said in his letter to the members. Read full letter here… To donate to the project click here: www.globalgiving.org/projects/build-a-radio-station-for-peace-in-sierra-leone/
Rev. Dr. Samuel Meshack, president of WACC-Asia

By Teresia Mutuku, Communication Officer and Web Manager, WACC

		A WACC-Africa member, Catherine Ouma, has sent a passionate appeal to members and friends to donate to Radio Shalom project through Kenya’s popular mobile-phone money transfer service, Mpesa. Radio Shalom is a peace radio station based in Freetown, Sierra Leone and supported by WACC together with the Council of Churches of Sierra Leone. It aims at broadcasting programmes that foster peace and reconciliation following a decade of civil war in the country.
Catherine Ouma, WACC-Africa member

“Communicating a culture of peace is crucial to rebuilding the nation, fostering resilience, and to the process of reconciliation.” - Mrs. Ebun James-DeKam, General Secretary, Council of Churches Sierra Leone.

By Teresia Mutuku, Communication Officer and Web Manager, WACC

		Sierra Leone in West Africa is still on the road to recovery after being devastated by a decade of civil war in which tens of thousands of people were killed, children recruited as soldiers, given drugs and used to commit atrocities. Much of the country’s communication and information infrastructure was destroyed and it still faces the challenge of reconstruction. The World Association for Christian Communication (WACC) together with the Council of Churches of Sierra Leone (CCSL) is setting up a radio station in the country’s capital, Freetown, to broadcast programmes aimed at fostering peace and reconciliation.
Mrs. Ebun James-DeKam, General Secretary, Council of Churches Sierra Leone

Journalism, they say, is the Fourth Estate because of its enormous role in the governance system of a country. Ghana is touted as the beacon of democracy in Africa because of her democratic credentials, following successive and successful elections since the advent of the Fourth Republic in 1992.

As Ghana gears up for another round of crucial general elections on December 7, 2012, all eyes are on media practitioners, because they have the mandate to inform and educate the people, hence their information must be credible and accurate. The education must also be timely and rich in content for the people to benefit fully.

News release

On International Women's Day (March 8), WACC is encouraging its networks, members and partners among civil society groups, associations of media practitioners and media organizations to participate in UNESCO’s Women make the news campaign.