THE Anglican Church of Melanesia (ACoM) is planning to hold a round-table conference with its national and international agency partners in Honiara in early June.
The conference will focus on working together on projects in the context of ACoM’s Strategic Plan for the next several years.
A statement from the church said the plan includes further activities in the areas of mission and ministry, health, community development, clean water and sanitation, and education, as well as leadership training and capacity building in both Solomon Islands and Vanuatu.
“In addition, the Church will be developing new channels for training and communications within its own organization, including the increased use of IT, with the support of some partners,” the statement said.
The conference will be chaired by the Most Revd David Vunagi, Archbishop of Melanesia.
“The initiatives have the full support of the Bishops, as there is significant potential to increase the number of important projects that the Church will be able to work on in conjunction with its agency partners.
The conference was planned before the events of 3 April and the Church felt that it was all the more appropriate to go ahead with it as planned because the need for effective working arrangements and agreement on priorities between the church and its partners is even more important than before.
Through its dioceses and parishes, the Church can offer an extensive network of channels for the implementation of social and other projects in conjunction with the development agencies.
ACoM provides project support and financial coordination for projects through its headquarters in Honiara, under the responsibility of the Mission Secretary.
Preparations for next month’s conference are progressing well.
The intention is to repeat this round-table consultation conference about every two years.