Namibia

The partner of FELM in Namibia is the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Namibia (ELCIN). The Church operates predominantly in the northern areas of the country but has expanded to the urban centres in the central and southern parts of the country, for instance the capital Windhoek.

FELM staff work for ELCIN in

• Student and children work
• Music
• Diaconia
• Family support
• Financial management
• Education and development
• Child sponsorship

Ministry and Congregational work

Finnish Mission has over a hundred year history in Namibia. Missionaries initially worked in Ovamboland in the north.

After independence, the wave of migration from the rural areas and from the north to the south of the country has prompted the Church to expand to new areas. One fourth of the Church members currently live in urban areas.

FELM supports the ministry of ELCIN by:

• Developing Church music and the music activities in the Church
• Providing the salaries for Church workers in the poorest congregations
• Training for pastors and Church workers in the Paulinum seminary

Community Support and Capacity Building

The ELCIN is involved in a range of community development work, primarily in the urban areas. The Church has built three nursery schools in Katutura, a poor suburb of Windhoek. The schools also provide food to the children. 100-150 children receive a hot meal three times a week.

FELM also supports the training of nursery school teachers and sponsors children’s education.

In North Namibia the Church operates the Nkurenkuru School and a secondary school in Kavango. Child sponsorship is important for these schools: 50 of the 300 students at the Nkurenkuru School are sponsored by the Church.

HIV/AIDS

The situation of HIV/AIDS in Namibia is alarming. An estimated one fifth of the population carries the virus. The number of HIV infected is the third highest in the world. Many organizations, the Church included, have HIV/AIDS programmes that provide awareness, train volunteers and take care of orphans.

The Churches of Eastern and Southern Africa together with a number of Finnish organizations working in Africa have established an organization called Churches United in the Struggle against HIV/AIDS (CUAHA). FELM and the ELCIN are also members of CUAHA.