At a meeting of all the superiors of the two African conferences, held on November 22, 2025, it was decided to strengthen the JPIC mission in all African circumscriptions. Consequently, a strategy was developed that calls, first and foremost, for the creation of a JPIC group at the conference level in both African conferences, the organization of a workshop for formators, the planning of a seminar for all brothers in the circumscriptions, and raising awareness among brothers in formation.
JPIC Workshop for Formators
On April 30, 2026, as part of the meeting of formators from the African continent, a JPIC formation program was organized in Addis Ababa for formators from both African conferences. It was a unique opportunity to bring together all African formators and motivate them to deepen awareness of JPIC values among those working in formation. Naturally, the motivations that formators internalize become, in turn, content that they can effectively convey to those in formation. The underlying reason behind this initiative is the awareness that JPIC is an integral part of our life and our mission. The event was a collaboration between the JPIC Commission and the Order’s General Secretariat for Formation.
JPIC Formation Program for the Custody of Uganda
As part of the effort to strengthen the JPIC theme within the African conferences, a three-day session was organized on the theme “JPIC as Our Way of Life and Mission.” The seminar focused on raising awareness of JPIC among the friars of the circumscription. The participants unanimously affirmed that this was their first training session on the topic of JPIC, which they described as “a necessity of the moment.” They decided to develop a JPIC action plan for the entire Custody of Uganda. Praise is due to the Custos, Br. John Baluku, who showed great interest in organizing the seminar for the friars of Uganda.
A Story of Sustainable Development in Busungi
The pastoral approach of the Capuchins, who have always been committed to caring for “both body and soul,” is put into practice in the work of Brother Emmanuel Kiyemba.
Brother Kiyemba is the parish priest and guardian of the Capuchin friary in Busungi, a small town 60 km from Entebbe (Uganda). In addition to overseeing the completion of a large parish church that has been under construction for fifteen years, Brother Emmanuel has taken to heart the living conditions of his people, who are plagued by poverty and a lack of stable means of livelihood.
Having observed that most of his people were very poor and lacked the means to support themselves, he introduced an effective scientific method for growing coffee on the friary’s five acres of land. Today, this has become a training center for the local population. He also established a nursery where new seedlings are produced and distributed to the people at a very low price. As a result, he has succeeded in making a portion of the population living around the friary economically self-sufficient. During the election campaign, the President of Uganda, Mr. Kagula Museverni, came to visit the coffee plantation and, praising the way our Brother Kiyemba is training the local people, began speaking about him at every meeting, saying: “That hardworking priest—I can’t forget him.” As a token of appreciation, he also donated a sum of money for the construction of the church. Brother Kiyemba has also launched the “zero grazing” project, which aims to reduce the cutting of trees for firewood by the local population through the installation of biogas systems for households.