MAJOR SUPERIORS OF RELIGIOUS – GHANA TRAINS 20 SISTERS IN MEDIA AND COMMUNICATIONS
The Conference of Major Superiors of Religious – Ghana (CMSR-Gh) through a Project sponsored by Conrad Hilton Foundation has trained 20 Sisters from 10 Religious Institutes in Ghana, West Africa, in Media and Communications to tell their own stories.
The training was spearheaded by the Institute of Sisters of Mary, Mother of the Church in partnership with Global Newswatch Media and Communications, Ghana.
The 9-day training starting from 6th May to 14th May, 2024, took place at the Centre for Spiritual Renewal at Santasi - Kumasi in the Ashanti Region of Ghana. The programme commenced with the familiarisation and discussion of the Course content. Roles were also assigned for a smooth running of the training.
Sr. Cecilia Afari, SMMC, the Project Coordinator of the Media Training, in her Speech at the Opening Ceremony of the training on Tuesday May 7, highlighted the goals of the initiative, mainly, to establish visibility of Religious Institutes in Ghana.
According to her, “People say all sorts of things about Religious Sisters, because they do not know who Sisters really are and what they do.”
She stated that the objectives of the Media Training Project were to train 20 Sisters from all over the country in Media, Communication and Networking, create a functioning website and register a Communication Network for Women Religious Congregations in Ghana.
In a Keynote address, the Executive Secretary of the Conference of Major Superiors of Religious - Ghana, Sr. Theodora Adzayawo, SMMC, explained that the formation of the Communication Network of Women Religious was the dream of the former President of CMSR-Gh, Sr. Mercy Boateng, SSL as a result of an experience with Sister Communicators from some East African countries during the 2022 Hilton Foundation Convening in Nairobi, Kenya. Sr. Theodora Adzayawo urged the participants of the training to be vibrant and put whatever they learnt into practice.
One of the Managers of the Centre for Spiritual Renewal, Rev. Fr. Timothy Baghrmwin, SJ, a psychologist, in a welcome address, challenged the Sisters to be “aggressive” in the use of media for evangelisation. He encouraged the participants to make use of the rare opportunity given them to participate in the training and write stories that would project their Religious Institutes.
Fr Timothy recalled the time during his formation and declared; "I just want to say that you have an opportunity given to you that we did not have. When I was in formation, we never had these opportunities to do these things ... Please, take advantage of it.”
By way of encouraging the Sister Communicators, he informed them that though a psychologist with no inclination towards journalism, he has published one book already and have two others in the pipeline.
During the training, the Sisters were schooled on the basics in News/Feature Writing, Photography/Videography, use of phones for Livestreaming, Interview Skills, Media Ethics, Website Management and Graphic Design.
As part of the training, the participants had the opportunity to visit the Communications Office of the Catholic Archdiocese of Kumasi and the studios of Kessben TV and FM to have a practical experience. They also toured St. Peter's Minor Basilica to familiarise themselves with historical features there.
The Sister Communicators were invited by Most Rev. Peter Kwasi Sarpong, Archbishop Emeritus of Kumasi to his residence at Santasi. They exchanged pleasantries, sang and danced to mark his 91st birthday celebrated on February 6 this year.
On May 12, the Archbishop Emeritus facilitated the visit of the Sisters to the Akwasidae celebration which also climaxed the Silver Jubilee of the Enthronement of the Asantehene, Otumfuo Osei Tutu II at the Manhyia Palace.
At a Thanksgiving Mass to end the training session, Rev Fr Peter Laast, CSSp, one of the Priests In-Charge of the Centre, told the Sisters to see the opportunity given them as a gift and use it effectively in evangelisation.
The Sister Communicators evaluated the training session and shared the expectations they will have to meet when they return to practice what they have learnt. One of the expectations was to take full control of all religious programmes of their various Institutes as far as Media and Communication are concerned and produce quality works. As a way of equipping the participants for a start, they were given a phone each by Sr Afari, SMMC.
Some of the Religious Congregations that benefitted from the Media and Communication Training include Sisters of Mary Mother of the Church (SMMC), Daughters of the Most Holy Trinity (FST), Handmaids of the Divine Redeemer (HDR), Handmaids of the Holy Child Jesus (HHCJ), and Missionary Sisters of Holy Rosary (MSHR). Others are Notre Dame de l’Eglise (NDE), Sisters of Mary Immaculate (SMI), Sisters of St Louis (SSL), Sisters of the Incarnate Word (SVI), and the Society of Infant Jesus (SIJ).
Source: Sr Agnes Mercy Nyatsoe, SMMC.
