DOI Page / Citation link:
https://doi.org/10.11588/diglit.70004#0199
197
accepted the offer. Since then the churches have received annual financial con-
tributions from the BMZ which may only be used for development projects,
and not for pastoral purposes. In 1986, for instance, 223 million DM ear-
marked for development aid went to Protestant and Catholic organisations.
These funds supplemented those raised by the churches and Christian organi-
sations for development aid projects, which in that year were more than three
times this amount.
However, the funds made available to the churches by the state are but a small
part (on average 3 - 4%) of the total state contribution to development aid.
They have been increased since 1985 and the intention is to continue this in-
crease, but the capacity of the church organisations to effectively channel these
funds is of course limited.
2. Church Development Projects in Zambia.2
It is not possible in this study to give more than a selective account of the de-
velopment projects of the churches and church organisations in Zambia. They
are very varied and often very informal, so difficult to summarize. It is partic-
ularly difficult to present the work of individual churches. An exception is the
Catholic Church whose activities are better coordinated and documented than
most. During the author’s interviews with church authorities information was
provided by almost all of them on development connected activities, and the
compilation of WOODHALL (1972) also shows that the majority of churches do
not restrict themselves to pastoral work but accept that they have concerns
which extend into the social and economic sphere. The situation of church-
related organisations set up specifically to undertake development projects is
somewhat clearer, as too is the Christian Council of Zambia (CCZ) which has
its own project department. For this reason, the activities in Zambia of the
Catholic church, of the CCZ and of World Vision, an international Christian
aid organisation, will be looked at here.
The Catholic Church in Zambia has, on account of its size, potential for reach-
ing large parts of the country’s population. In Fig. 45, three types of projects
are mapped. Apart from these, there is a great number of more informal
activities which could not be included in the map. The so-called ‘homecraft
centres’ provide informal training opportunities for women. There are a total
of 69 centres of this type, distributed throughout the country, in which women
and girls are instructed in sewing, cooking and nutrition, health education and
child care under the supervision of sisters from the Catholic orders. Due to the
large number of sisters (there are nearly 800 nuns but only 500 priests in the
country), the Catholic Church has good access to women, who, even in Zambia,
are in many respects still a marginal group. Since the Catholic Church in Zam-
bia is extremely poor and yet also trying to become financially independent
accepted the offer. Since then the churches have received annual financial con-
tributions from the BMZ which may only be used for development projects,
and not for pastoral purposes. In 1986, for instance, 223 million DM ear-
marked for development aid went to Protestant and Catholic organisations.
These funds supplemented those raised by the churches and Christian organi-
sations for development aid projects, which in that year were more than three
times this amount.
However, the funds made available to the churches by the state are but a small
part (on average 3 - 4%) of the total state contribution to development aid.
They have been increased since 1985 and the intention is to continue this in-
crease, but the capacity of the church organisations to effectively channel these
funds is of course limited.
2. Church Development Projects in Zambia.2
It is not possible in this study to give more than a selective account of the de-
velopment projects of the churches and church organisations in Zambia. They
are very varied and often very informal, so difficult to summarize. It is partic-
ularly difficult to present the work of individual churches. An exception is the
Catholic Church whose activities are better coordinated and documented than
most. During the author’s interviews with church authorities information was
provided by almost all of them on development connected activities, and the
compilation of WOODHALL (1972) also shows that the majority of churches do
not restrict themselves to pastoral work but accept that they have concerns
which extend into the social and economic sphere. The situation of church-
related organisations set up specifically to undertake development projects is
somewhat clearer, as too is the Christian Council of Zambia (CCZ) which has
its own project department. For this reason, the activities in Zambia of the
Catholic church, of the CCZ and of World Vision, an international Christian
aid organisation, will be looked at here.
The Catholic Church in Zambia has, on account of its size, potential for reach-
ing large parts of the country’s population. In Fig. 45, three types of projects
are mapped. Apart from these, there is a great number of more informal
activities which could not be included in the map. The so-called ‘homecraft
centres’ provide informal training opportunities for women. There are a total
of 69 centres of this type, distributed throughout the country, in which women
and girls are instructed in sewing, cooking and nutrition, health education and
child care under the supervision of sisters from the Catholic orders. Due to the
large number of sisters (there are nearly 800 nuns but only 500 priests in the
country), the Catholic Church has good access to women, who, even in Zambia,
are in many respects still a marginal group. Since the Catholic Church in Zam-
bia is extremely poor and yet also trying to become financially independent