ASEC News & Reflections

ASEC is serving Catholic Sisters in 10 sub-Saharan African countries, providing access to educational opportunities. There is much to celebrate regarding the work of ASEC and the impact of Sisters who are benefiting from our programs.

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Sr. Judith Atukwatse, OLGC, used the skills she learned in SLDI to start a vegetable and poultry project for her community in Uganda.

Sisters Leadership Development Initiative (SLDI) Program, 2021 Year in Review

Oct 18, 2021: [Cameroon, Ghana, Kenya, Lesotho, Malawi, Nigeria, SouthSudan, Tanzania, Uganda, Zambia] A year in review of the Sisters Leadership Development Initiative (SLDI) program. Read about milestones, news and experiences from 2021.

Armed with an education and technology training, Catholic sisters are unleashing their creativity across sub-Saharan Africa to implement innovative and creative solutions to real world problems. Pictured above, sisters Odette and Cecilia explore technology on a cell phone.

A Sister’s Seed of Imagination Grows a Field of Hope

Oct 4, 2021: [Cameroon, Kenya, Uganda, Zambia] Catholic sisters in Africa are using their education to dream up creative human development projects that help their local communities.

In June, 2018, ASEC staff also toured the Our Lady of Good Counsel (OLGC) farm where the sisters grow food and keep animals, like these pigs. An SLDI alumna, Sr. Mary Lilian Baitwakakye, was able to secure funding to begin a dairy farm, which supports both the congregation and the Boni Consilii Girls Vocational Secondary school.

Investing in Africa’s Small Farms Yields Big Outcomes

Sep 6, 2021: [Cameroon, Kenya, Tanzania, Uganda, Zambia] Catholic sisters in Africa are using crop and animal farming to sustainably support their local communities.

Sisters are using computer and technology skills learned in ASEC's programs to streamline and enhance their service work to the poor and vulnerable across Africa. Pictured are sisters from ASEC's Higher Education from Sisters in Africa (HESA) program in Tanzania, receiving personal laptops to assist them in their studies (2020).

Tech-Savvy Sisters: Catholic Nuns Share How Technology Transforms Their Apostolates

Aug 2, 2021: [Cameroon, Malawi, Tanzania, Uganda, Zambia] How Catholic nuns translate computer and tech skills into enhanced social services for Africa’s poor and vulnerable.

The Virtual SLDI Partners Workshop took place from June 15-17, 2021, with attendees logging in from the USA and the 10 African countries ASEC serves.

ASEC Holds SLDI Virtual Partners Workshop In Preparation For Phase VI of the Program

Jun 23, 2021: [Cameroon, Ghana, Kenya, Lesotho, Malawi, Nigeria, SouthSudan, Tanzania, Uganda, Zambia, USA] A three-day virtual workshop enabled staff and partners to collaboratively prepare for Phase VI of ASEC’s largest program.

Many improvements at St. Matia Primary School can be attributed to Sr. Betty’s leadership as head teacher. And Sr. Betty credits the education she has received through HESA for her success. Photo by Blair Harmon, Unsplash.com.

Ugandan Nun Makes Huge Improvements at Rural Primary School

Jun 14, 2021: [Uganda] As head teacher, Sr. Betty is using her HESA program education to provide a stable yet constantly improving learning environment for kids in Uganda.

Sr. Faida is able to provide both stability and hope amidst the chaos of a war-torn nation thanks to the skills and confidence she gained through ASEC’s SLDI program.

One Sister’s Solutions to a War Torn South Sudan

May 24, 2021: [SouthSudan, Uganda] Sr. Faida noticed how difficult it was for her neighbors to obtain healthy food during lockdown. So, she and the sisters taught them how to plant vegetables using sacks and broken buckets on their veranda.

Highly trusted members of their communities, Catholic sisters are in a unique position of service, especially during times of crisis in Africa, when emergency response is needed.

Bringing Light to the Darkness: Catholic Sisters on the Front Lines in Africa

May 3, 2021: [Cameroon, Kenya, Malawi, Uganda, Zambia] Catholic sisters have become a critical component of emergency response among local African communities in crisis.

Sr. Lucy's arrival to the US was scheduled for August 2020 but has been delayed due to COVID-19. She is currently studying remotely with researchers at CARA to prepare for her fellowship.

7th Visiting Scholar Selected for CARA Research Fellowship

Apr 12, 2021: [Uganda, USA] Sr. Lucy Dora Akello, LSMIG, Uganda, selected for six month research fellowship with The Center for Applied Research in the Apostolate (CARA) Georgetown University.

ASEC staff conducted a site visit to Boni Consilii Girls Vocational Secondary school in June, 2018, and were able to meet Sr. Lilian, Sr. Lucia and some of the girls who attend the school.

Hundreds of Girls in Rural Uganda Benefit from Practical, Holistic Education

Mar 15, 2021: [Uganda] Two Catholic nuns have used their education to advance the Boni Consilii school, providing previously unimagined opportunity to young girls in Uganda.

Catholic nuns who have graduated from ASEC's programs have created over 3,800+ jobs in underserved African communities. Here, members of a women's group created by Sr. Stephany learn the skill of soap-making, which will give them the ability to create income for their families.

The Unlikely Women Creating Jobs and Reducing Poverty in Africa

Mar 1, 2021: [Ghana, Nigeria, Tanzania, Uganda] ASEC program participants are applying their education and skills to create and sustain jobs across Africa.

As a trauma survivor herself, Sr. Judith uses her experiences & expertise to help victims and perpetrators of SGBV heal.

Helping Survivors Heal from Trauma in Northern Uganda

Feb 15, 2021: [Uganda] Sr. Judith received a grant to start the Capacitar Trauma Healing project in response to the effects of war crimes & cultural acceptance of sexual & gender-based violence (SGBV) in Northern Uganda.

Sustainable Development Goal 5, Target 5.3, aims to eliminate all harmful practices, such as child, early and forced marriage and female genital mutilation by 2030.

4 Women Changing the Sexual and Gender Based Violence Narrative in Africa

Feb 1, 2021: [Cameroon, Kenya, Uganda] 4 Catholic sisters whose service work is helping to prevent and reduce sexual and gender-based violence in Africa.

Clockwise, from top left: Alumnae workshop in Kenya (Feb. 2020). Sr. Victoria Ajio, MSBVM, attending a South Sudan SLDI Finance workshop. Sisters in Cameroon receive laptops during an Administration workshop. Tanzanian sisters receive books at a 2020 Administration workshop.

Sisters Leadership Development Initiative (SLDI) Program, 2020 Year in Review

Dec 9, 2020: [Cameroon, Ghana, Kenya, Lesotho, Malawi, Nigeria, SouthSudan, Tanzania, Uganda, Zambia, USA] A year in review of the Sisters Leadership Development Initiative (SLDI) program. Read about milestones, news and experiences from 2020 as SLDI Phase V begins.

Sr. Christabel, an SLDI student in Uganda, works from a tent on her congregation's farm to get the best internet connectivity.

COVID-19 Highlights the Importance of Educating Catholic Sisters

Nov 9, 2020: [Malawi, Uganda, Zambia, USA] Throughout the pandemic, sisters are doing what they always do: they get the job done. Their problem solving skills and resilience are exactly what the world needs right now.

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