Page 30 - Presbyterian Connection – Spring 2021

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PRESBYTERIAN
SPRING 2021
presbyterian.ca
Connection
INTERNATIONAL
A New Moderator in East Africa
ple blamed the illness on sin or witch- craft. Years later, the Rev. Mutahi was invited to Canada as an international partner guest to attend the PCC 2015 General Assembly, held in Vancouver, B.C. Expressing the impor tance of our mutual par tnership, he paid tribute to Dr. Allen for his training activities and for the development of a ground- breaking HIV and AIDS policy, which is still considered by many as the most progressive HIV and AIDS policy of any church in Africa.
In 2016, The Presbyterian Church in Canada received a request from the moderator of the PCEA, asking for scholarship support for the Rev. Mutahi, who was pursuing a Ph.D. in Religious Studies at the Catholic Uni- versity of East Africa. The Rev. Mu- tahi had been teaching at the Presby-
terian University of East Africa, which serves as seminary training for min- isters and he was also a chaplain. We were pleased to support his studies. The Rev. Mutahi’s thesis title is: “The Perspectives of Muslim Leaders in the Nairobi Presbyterian Metropolis Towards Faithful Interreligious Dia- logue with Christians.” Insecurity in Kenya has been a concern for dec- ades and the Rev. Mutahi’s com- mitment to engagement in religious dialogue is a sign of hope.
In a recent email, the Rev. Mutahi wrote: “My hope is that our partner- ship with the PCC will be strength- ened now that I have connections with you.” To this, we say, Amen.
The Rev. Mutahi is married to Wan- jiru and together they have two sons, Mutahi and Kamau.
By International Ministries
The Rev. Patrick Thegu Mutahi will be the new Moderator of the 23rd General Assembly of the Presbyte- rian Church of East Africa (PCEA). He will be installed in April 2021 for a three-year term, with a possible second term. When expressing our best wishes for his election to this new position, he replied that, “It is a great honour and privilege from God.” The PCEA is a growing church with 54 presbyteries and over 3,200
congregations in Kenya, Uganda and Tanzania. The Presbyterian Church in Canada has been a partner since 1983, when the first mission volun- teer served.
The Rev. Mutahi has a 20-year connection with the PCC. He was se- lected to be in the first HIV and AIDS training program for pastors, because of his progressive views. Dr. Richard Allen, PCC mission staff who served in Kenya from 1994 to 2015, played a major role in conceiving and teach- ing the program. The Rev. Mutahi
The Rev. Patrick Thegu Mutahi and for- mer international mission staff Dr. Rick Allen in 2015.
explained that in 2000, when the pro- gram began, 600 people were dying daily from the HIV and AIDS epidemic. The training program demystified the causes of the epidemic, as most peo-
PRESBYTERIAN WORLD SERVICE & DEVELOPMENT
A Changing Sense of Partnership
Through partnership with Canadian Foodgrains Bank, PWS&D accesses government funding to maximize the impact of food security and emergency food projects, like this one in South Sudan. PHOTO CREDIT: CFGB/ADRA
roots level.
In recent years though, the gov-
ernment’s partnership model has changed. Through a call for propos- als model, the government adopted a competitive process for access to funds. This system often includes a particular development sector focus and projects are selected based on scale and alignment with geographic and thematic priorities.
PWS&D was initially quite suc- cessful within this new model. A three-year proposal to support ma- ternal, newborn and child health in Malawi and Afghanistan from 2011 to 2014 was approved. Building on the positive outcome of this project, we successfully submitted a pro- posal for the next period, which was double the size.
At the peak, we were programming $2 million per year in Malawi and Af- ghanistan and making a significant difference in the lives of thousands of women and children in places where access to health services was previously non-existent or severely restricted. Field visits by our Cana- dian government program officers affirmed the necessity of our initia- tive and the added value that we were bringing to the table.
In 2020, we concluded the second phase of our maternal, newborn and child health project with the Govern- ment of Canada. In response to the government’s call for proposals, PWS&D submitted a five-year pro- posal which would have built on the results of the last seven years. The government received three times the number of proposals than could be supported by the funds allocated to
this initiative. Unfortunately, this pro- posal was not approved by the gov- ernment.
In this new context, organiza- tions—like PWS&D and our part- ners overseas—spend a substantial amount of time, energy and money to develop proposals with little guaran- tee of funding. Many get turned down simply because there are not enough resources available to support all the proposals, regardless of past suc- cess or the quality of the project.
Now, for the first time in nearly 40 years of partnership, PWS&D faces a period with no direct funding from the Canadian government.
In some cases, sustainability was achieved—in Afghanistan, for ex- ample, the Afghan government has taken over responsibility for the clin- ics that were established by our part- ner with PWS&D funding. In other cases, it will be difficult for remote hospital outreach programs to con- tinue without our support, such as the Embangweni Mission Hospital in Malawi. Within this new reality we are working with our partners to en- sure the progress made over the past number of years is not lost.
Fortunately, PWS&D is still able to access government matching funds, up to 4:1, through its membership in Canadian Foodgrains Bank. We are currently leveraging this opportunity by leading a food assistance project in Afghanistan and contributing to support people affected by the Syria crisis, droughts in South Sudan, hun- ger in Yemen, as well as supporting conservation agriculture efforts in Malawi.
Additionally, funds contributed by
Between 2011 and 2020, PWS&D, with support from the Canadian government, worked to improve maternal and child health in Afghanistan and Malawi. PHO- TO CREDIT: CWSA
PWS&D to KAIROS’ Women, Peace and Security program are matched 3:1. Through this project, women’s groups in Colombia, South Sudan, Democratic Republic of Congo and Palestine and Israel are supported in their efforts to eradicate gender- based violence.
In response to these changing circumstances, PWS&D advocates with other Canadian development agencies to engage the Canadian government’s attention on issues re- lated both to the amount of funding available for overseas development assistance, but also the mechanisms by which they are distributed.
As we look forward, we are re- thinking our strategies to access government funding. We may need to form stronger alliances to increase our scale and our capacity to make a difference. We may need to think out- side the box to build a renewed vision of what’s possible in changing times.
Thank you for continuing to sup- port the ministry of PWS&D in these turbulent times, when reaching out to the world is more important than ever.
By Guy Smagghe, PWS&D Director
Since 1982, PWS&D has been work- ing in partnership with the Cana- dian government to achieve mutually agreed upon development goals. Our programs have evolved—from the initial grants in the early years that had few strings attached until now when the government’s requirements for reporting and accountability have risen exponentially. For a long time, PWS&D could expect to receive government funding at a predictable level, around $400,000 per year, in a 3:1 matching formula. This arrange- ment allowed for predictability in the length of agreements and new pro- posals could be developed to ensure continuity.
As government priorities shifted over time, our program proposals also shifted to ensure that priorities were aligned. As civil society or- ganizations, PWS&D’s partners were able to fill gaps where local govern- ments were lacking—making it pos- sible to reach out to populations that might otherwise be left behind.
Over the years, PWS&D, with fund- ing from the Government of Canada, supported partners in Malawi, Gha- na, Kenya, Lesotho, Mozambique, India, Pakistan, Afghanistan, Gua- temala, El Salvador, Nicaragua and the Dominican Republic. We helped improve peoples’ livelihoods, health and food security. We also supported women’s rights movements through active empowerment at the grass-