REFLECTIONS ON OUR INVOLVEMENT
IN SOCIAL COMMUNICATIONS IN AFE
The Salesians in Eastern Africa
have made tremendous impact in the field of Technical
education in the region in the last twenty three
years of our existence. We are also being recognized
for our creative involvement with the youth and
are being called upon to direct offices and counsel
agencies to improve the challenging world of the
young. Other areas of impact in varying degrees
are, frontier missions, catechesis, secondary
education and the children in streets.
The Provincial Chapter 2 in drawing
up the pastoral plan gave a fillip to our efforts
in the field of Mass Media. The challenges
to establish a media center, equip and train Salesians,
develop formation directives for media education
were decided on with the firm determination that
it was TIME NOW for us Salesians to race to the
front on “cyber high way”. If Don
Bosco earned the acclaim to have set up the most
modern printing press in his days and is currently
running for the honor of being named the patron
saint of the modern media, we, in this part of
the world should not falter on the starting blocks.
For a fledgling enterprise the
progress has been commendable. The decision to
set apart the Provincial solidarity fund for the
establishment of the office of Social Communications
was a positive note of encouragement. By 2002,
two confreres completed their training in media
production. The video editing facility and the
Desk Top Publishing facility at Don Bosco YES,
(BEAMS) were already functioning by the end of
2004. By May 2005, an ultramodern digital audio
studio christened STUDIO BOSCO began its productions.
At the AMECEA plenary at Kamplala in June 2005,
BEAMS received an award for excellence from SIGNIS.
In the field of the modern communications
we are on the race with multinationals. This is
a challenge rather than a threat as we as a congregation
is bigger than these other players. We should
not hesitate to take “bold strides”.
With all good wishes
Fr. Tom Kunnel sdb
Delegate for Social Communications, AFE
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