In September 2024, A.Dieudonné Serukabuza, Pax Christi International Africa Regional Coordinator, traveled to Burundi and met with the Regional Sister Superior of USUMA (Union des Supérieures Majeures au Burundi), the national union of religious sisters in Burundi, to sign a Memorandum of Understanding extending our existing programme training religious sisters on conflict prevention and transformation, active nonviolence, and trauma healing to sisters in Burundi through a Training of Trainers.
Training of Trainers (Bujumbura– October 2024)
Our Training of Trainers for religious sisters took place at the Mont Sion Ginguku retreat and training centre in Bujumbura, Burundi, from October 20th to 25th, 2024.
Sixteen sisters gathered to delve into nonviolence, conflict transformation, and peacebuilding, with the support of A. Dieudonné Sérukabuza, Sr Dévote Nikwigize, project assistant, and Sr Angèle GAPIO and Pascal Mugaruka, facilitators from the Democratic Republic of Congo.
A module on the prevention of sexual exploitation and abuse (PSEA) was launched during the training and was very well received by the sisters. They were curious and attentive, and asked many questions to Sr Angela. In particular, they were interested in learning about denunciation procedures, which are not commonly known within the Church in Burundi.
At the end of the week, Fr. Louis Mbazumutima, director of the Centre Jeunes Kamenge (CJK) – an associate member of Pax Christi International, came to celebrate the closing mass. He also blessed the bracelets the sisters received as a souvenir of the session and a reminder to choose peace.
The participants will now return to their congregations and apostolates. Since the sisters came from ten different religious congregations, and are based in four different dioceses across Burundi, the impact of the training they have received will be amplified in their parishes and communities. A new wave of peace and reconciliation will grow throughout the country thanks to each sister’s efforts.
