www.caritas-africa.org

(Left to right) Jacques Dinan, Mgr Jean Bosco Ntep (2003-2007 President), Léopold Mamtsaï,
Sabina Katongo Mulenga Chifwepa, Bruno Miteyo, Mgr Cyprian Kizito Lwanga,
Philomena Johnson, Hyacinthe N'Datien, Père Pierre Cibambo,
Sister Aine Hughes et Margaret Mwaniki.

Structure

Caritas Africa is endowed with the following organs:

The Regional Conference

The Regional Conference, called the Pan-African Conference of Caritas, is the meeting that gathers the representatives of all the member organisations of Caritas Africa. It is the supreme body of Caritas Africa and it is normally held every four years. The last Panafrican took place in Libreville, Gabon from 2 to 7 July 2006. The theme was: "Witnessing God's Love for Peace and Development."

The Regional Chair

The President of the Region is also one of the Vice-presidents of Caritas Internationalis, in accordance with Article 4 of the Statutes and Article 15 of the Internal Regulations of Caritas Internationalis.

In the course of the Panafrican in 2006, His Grace Mgr Cyprian Kizito Lwanga, Archbishop of Kampala, Uganda, was elected President of Caritas Africa for four years from 2007 to 2011. His election was ratified during the General Assembly of Caritas Internationalis which was held in the Synod Hall, Vatican, from 3 to 9 June 2007.

The Africa Regional Commission (ARC)

The Regional Commission is the executive organ of Caritas Africa. The members of the Commission are the Regional President who presides over the meetings of the Commission, the Regional Vice-President, the Zone Coordinators, the Regional Secretary and the person in charge of the Africa Desk at Xaritas Internationalis. The ARC meets twice yearly.

During the September 2007 ARC meeting, Dr Bruno Miteyo, coordinator of the ACEAC Zone and Deputy National Director of Caritas Développement Congo in the Democratic Republic of Congo, was elected Vice-President of Caritas Africa for a four-year period.

The other zonal coordinators are, for the ACERAC Zone, Léopold Mamtsaï of Caritas Cameroon ; for the AECAWA Zone, Philomena Johnson of Caritas Ghana ; for the AMECEA Zone, Sabina Katongo Mulenga Chifwepa of Caritas Zambia ; for the CEDOI-M Zone, Jacques Dinan of Caritas Ile Maurice ; for the CERAO Zone, Hyacinthe N'Datien N'Datien of Caritas Côte d'Ivoire ; and for the IMBISA Zone, Sr Aine Hughes of Caritas South Africa. The person in charge of the Africa Desk at Caritas Internationalis is Father Pierre Cibambo.

The Executive Secretariat of Caritas Africa (ESCA)

The Regional Secretariat, the executive organ of the Region, is composed of the Regional Secretary and the staff necessary for carrying out the decisions of the Regional Conference and the Regional Commission. The main function of the Regional Secretariat, under the direction of the Regional Secretary, is to carry out any work that may be entrusted to it by the Regional Conference and the Regional Commission.

Jacques Dinan of Caritas Ile Maurice, is the ad interim Executive Secretary of Caritas Africa. He does the job on a voluntary basis.

The Zonal Coordination

In order to achieve a true cooperation between Churches, Caritas Africa is subdivided into zones which correspond to the territories of the Regional Associations of Episcopal Conferences. Thus, Caritas Africa comprises: Caritas ACEAC Zone (Association des Conférences Episcopales d’Afrique Centrale), Caritas ACERAC Zone (Association des Conférences Episcopales de la Région de l’Afrique Centrale), Caritas AECAWA Zone (Association of Episcopal Conferences of Anglophone Western Africa), Caritas AMECEA Zone (Association of Members of the Episcopal Conferences of Eastern Africa), Caritas CERAO Zone (Conférence Episcopale de la Région d’Afrique de l’Ouest), Caritas CEDOI-M Zone (Conférences Episcopales Des îles de l’Océan Indien et de Madagascar) and Caritas IMBISA Zone (Inter-regional Meeting of Bishops In Southern Africa).

The dynamics of the zone are guaranteed by a zone coordinator chosen by the member organisations of the zone. The zone coordinators work in close collaboration with the Regional Secretariat to carry out the regional work plan and to guarantee the tasks of responding to emergencies, advocacy, organisational reinforcement, communication and exchange.