Twenty-five people from the Church of Jesus Christ in Madagascar (FJKM) gathered for a consultation from 14-15 November in Antananarivo with the CWM Mission Support Programme (MSP) team comprised of Rev. Julie Sim, CWM Mission Secretary for Mission Programme and Partnership, and Stephen Chia, MSP Project Manager.
The MSP team shared with participants important project planning guidelines to include in their proposals that will enable to them to more likely to secure funding.
In his presentation, Chia commended and expressed his appreciation of the church’s high level of engagement and support of the project and added his observation of the FJKM’s proactiveness in taking ownership of the MSP initiative.
“[It] is obvious through the participation of the people, the feedback they have given as far as the presentations they have prepared [that] this is a very good start to the MSP process…and this will build a good foundation for FJKM to draft a successful proposal [to] start the project.
“We really look forward to seeing the proposal and we believe that FJKM has the structure and the expertise to run a successful mission programme,” said Chia.
Expressing her appreciation of CWM’s effort in supporting its member churches through the MSP, Voahangy Randrianja, a member of the FJKM National Council Bureau said, “This mission consultation enables us to not only learn about the objectives of CWM but also to align our objectives with theirs.
“We thank God that our vision towards the development of education, family life, justice, care for the environment and patriotism dovetails with CWM’s along with the strong vision that Christian mission does not just stay in the church but goes into the population in order to develop the rest of the community.”
Emphasising the importance of forging a more robust and united partnership was Rev. Triomphe Randriamisaina, Vice-President of the FJKM Church-wide Committee Against HIV/AIDS and Epidemics who said, “These [MSP] guidelines are very important to facilitate the partnership and to show the oneness of the churches in Christ.
“[As we] draft the proposal after this consultation, it will guide us on how to create one that focuses on people who need our help. MSP is a good platform that creates the kind of partnership with CWM that fosters…unity amid diversity among churches.”
The FJKM proposals for MSP will be completed by February 2025.
