DownloadOct. 19, 2009 issue
Vision for Africa: future land of peace
AMBS graduate leads program to end ‘ancestral fire’ of violence
By Dan Shenk For Mennonite Weekly ReviewTitus Oyeyemi has a vision that Africa is the future land of peace.
Titus Oyeyemi anoints a boy with oil in connection with a prayer rally for Nigerian airspace safety in November 2008 at the Port Harcourt International Airport in Nigeria as other children wait in line for their blessing.
He believes the best place to build on that vision is with children and youth.
“They represent a new brand of people who will leave a new legacy of peace,” Oyeyemi said. “We don’t want young people to fall into the old idea of bitter conflict and disharmony, religious dichotomy and ethnic hatred, but we want future Nigerians to become united for peace and nation-building.”
Oyeyemi, a graduate of Associated Mennonite Biblical Seminary in Elkhart, Ind., founded African Projects for Peace and Love Initiatives in 2001. Through the initiatives, hundreds of young people have completed a year of national peace service in Nigeria.
Since 2003 African Foundation for Peace and Love Initiatives —the Nigerian version of the program, based in Lagos — has been working on the concept of a “20-Year-Long Tomorrow.” They organize peace clubs tailored to several age groups:
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African Children of Peace Clubs, ages 5-12
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Youth Peace Alliance Clubs, ages 13-19
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KAIROS Peace and Love Clubs, ages 19-24
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New Peace Legacy Clubs, 25
The program’s long-range plans include a peace academy. Oyeyemi also hopes to expand to other countries in Africa. He has had conversations with people in Burundi, Gambia, Ghana, Kenya, Liberia, Niger and South Africa.
Comments
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I am quite pleased with this article MWR has published and for the good work of Dan Shenk in writing it up. I know Titus personally and have tried to be of support to him over many years. He is seeking additional board members for APPLI and better funding, though he has done remarkably well "on a shoestring" so to speak, thus far. This ministry seeks to involve both Christians and Muslims working together to stem violence and do peace education, and if in reading this you felt any spark of interest in supporting his unique vision please go to his website and get in touch!
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