Kinshasa

11-16 November 2007

The River Congo as seen from the capital, Kinshasa. Brazzaville, the capital of the Republic of Congo can be seen on the other side of the river.

This combined report was drafted from input by Samson Makhado, Daniel Neuhaus, Moira Chimombo, Gavin Brettenny and Anna-Marie Russell.

Preamble

The Kinshasa Central Africa Roundtable was further seed bearing fruit from the African Round Table held in Johannesburg in March 2005 and the result of the commitment of Christian Educators in the Francophone countries to the Africa Roundtable declaration. As Gavin Brettenny reminds us:” It is the time for Africa. It is Africa‘s time”. The feeling that arose in many African hearts is that now is the time to stand up and be counted.

Round-table presenters Samson Makhado (S.A), Daniel Neuhaus (France), Moira Chimombo (Malawi) and Gavin Brettenny (S.A.) fellowshipped and worked for two days at their hotel in Kinshasa prior to the start of the Round-table. Besides personal work commitments, the two days provided constructive time for relationship building, team orientated discussion about strategy for the work in Africa and translation of power points and papers prepared for the Round-table. They were joined by Anna-Marie Jayger (Mali), Christoff (Chad) and Anna-Marie Russell (ACSI SA).

Preparation of the Central Africa Roundtable

The organising Committee of the Central Africa Roundtable under the leadership of Bishop Nyamuke (Urban School President) and Justin Lubaki (Urban School coordinator) did an exceptional job: 57 participants from 10 countries attended the conference hosted in the conference venue near Dr. Shaumba High-school. The venue had accommodation, a dining hall, a kitchen and a number of halls and side rooms. It stands as an oasis amongst the poverty of the city.

The basic question for the Congolese specifically, was: Are our 6000 Protestant schools really Christian? Even when most schools have a weekly service, there is still much to do in matters of Biblical integration into the Curriculum, Intellectual Development, Christian Personnel, and Operational Integrity. Yet, there is a strong will to learn more and to train as many people as possible.
The Pre- ConferenceThe pre-conference was held three days before the Roundtable and attended by 130 principals, directors of studies and chaplains from the top thirty Christian schools of Kinshasa. The speakers were Daniel Neuhaus and Albert Watto from France and Moira Chimombo from Malawi. The participants were very attentive to the topics: What is a Christian Worldview? The five Essential Elements of a true Christian SchoolBeing an Educator yet a ChristianHow to teach Christianly Role of a Christian church

The pre- conference

The pre- conference also dealt with the issues of Why Wait? The SAFE project for HIV/AIDS prevention programme in Africa that was developed by Prof Moira Chimombo from Malawi. 

Programme

Opening ceremony:

The programme opened on the Sunday evening with cultural activities from one of the primary school in Kinshasa. Guests were welcomed by Bishop Marini Bono the Former DRC Senate President and the present head of the coalition of the 64 denominations named the Church of Christ in Congo.

Monday:

On the Monday we had the official opening by the Deputy Minister of Education. The overview of the Kinshasa Roundtable was presented by Samson Makhado and the Biblical worldview by Gavin Brettenny. Thereafter the delegation broke into the respective Roundtable groups. 

Tuesday:

The Tuesday plenary was led by Anna-Marie Russell. She dealt with “How to teach Christianly”. The education trend in Africa is still to “teach to the test” and delegates were confronted by the notion of really getting involved in the children’s lives.
Bishop Nyamuke dealt with the role of the Church.

Bishop Nyamoke

Wednesday

Wednesday was led by Samson Makhado. In Daniel Egeler’s absence (due to visa problems) he dealt with “The essential elements of effective Christian Schools.” The afternoon session was led by the Director General of Education who spoke on “The relationship of Church and State in Christian Education in the DRC.”

Thursday:

On the Thursday the Roundtable Secretary presented the resolution and the way forward was discussed, to be finalised by ACSI Colorado, SA and the Congolese. This process will be made available in due course after strong deliberation and prayer from all parties involved.
In the evenings students from 2 schools (The Gazelles, and The Samuel Levi School, two independent Protestant schools) shared songs, dances and testimonies
Issues common to the growth and development of Christian schooling in African countries were central in the discussions during the week, i.e. protecting the rights of Christian education and equipping Christian school staff with the necessary knowledge, skills and values to properly advance Christian education

The Closing ceremony

The ceremony was led by the Minister of Education, Bishop Marini Bono who officially closed the meeting.

Comments:

There are so many opportunities in this country alone; we ask ourselves how it will be possible to serve all these thousands of schools, ten thousands of teachers, and over one million students. The answer: only with God’s help!The manner in which the protestant churches in Kinshasa work together is commendable. The structure for education that exists in that country is one to be admired by all developed countries.It appears that the coordinated work for the development of Christian education on the continent can best take place through the collaborative efforts of three levels of governance: ContinentRegion (i.e. group of countries geographically and / or linguistically linked) Local (individual countries)

This conference confirmed again that partnership amongst different role players is critical for the promotion of Christian education on the continent.
The books and hundred of tracts in French disappeared like the Manna in the desert. There is a big need for good literature for teachers and schools throughout Francophone Africa. Some teachers from The Samuel Levi School have already started translating the ACSI Books for use in their own schools. They will now work in collaboration with Daniel Neuhaus to ensure that no unnecessary duplication takes place and to ensure quality.Although there are a number of teacher training institutes in Kinshasa, there is a desperate need for training from a Christian perspective. Harvest Institute’s contribution to the in-service equipping of Christian school staff is desperately needed. The writing of the training material from the Harvest Institute into modular form for teachers and the addition of a ‘Training the Trainer’ for each module is an urgent matter. The translation of the completed English modules into French is critical. Wellspring foundation in Rwanda will be translating the module ‘Biblical Worldview: Integration of school curriculum’ into French for the first Training the Trainer session in March 2008.
It appears that the coordinated work for the development of Christian education on the continent can best take place through the collaborative efforts of three levels of governance: Continent, Region (i.e. group of countries geographically and / or linguistically linked) and local (individual countries).