West Africa Theological Seminary

HIV / AIDS Campaign

West Africa Theological Seminary (WATS) is uniquely positioned to launch a very sizeable initiative in the war on HIV / AIDS. African society is deeply religious, and any approach to solving the HIV / AIDS pandemic in Africa needs to take this into consideration. The church in Nigeria, while extraordinarily powerful in the society, is still largely uninvolved and uninformed.

The number one challenge in addressing the HIV / AIDS problem in Nigeria reported by groups such as the CDC Global AIDS Program (GAP) is a lack of adequate manpower. Regrettably, a lopsided portion of the funding currently going to address this problem is spent on the sponsoring of conferences, both inside and outside of Africa. Although these conferences have their place, mere research and discussion do not solve the problem.

Our Goals:

• To come alongside the citizens of the largest black city in the world as they face the mounting HIV / AIDS crisis.
  
• To save at least 250,000 lives over the next five years through HIV / AIDS education and prevention programs.
  
• To mobilize at least 10,000 Lagos area congregations to help prevent HIV / AIDS, and to provide loving care for those who have already contracted AIDS.
  
• To assist existing orphanages caring for AIDS orphans by training and mobilizing area church members in the care of AIDS orphans.

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Getting Started

This program was formally launched during the first semester of the 2005 / 2006 WATS academic year.  Dr. Danny McCain, WATS adjunct faculty member and associate professor at the University of Jos, serves as primary consultant.  Dr. McCain has worked in some twenty Nigerian states to provide training in Nigerian public schools for HIV / AIDS education, prevention and care.  The initial steps in the program (to be completed during the first semester) include a seminary-wide exposure for awareness and general training, specialized training for those students placed on HIV / AIDS scholarship assistance, and several church-level conferences to initiate the on-the-streets work.

In addition, Miss Deanna Cathcart, of OMS International, who has worked in HIV / AIDS education and prevention in several countries in the Two-Thirds World, has committed to spend several months at WATS in 2006 sharpening the effectiveness of this program.  The rapidity with which we can reach our goal of 250 students engaged in this program will depend on our ability to continue to raise adequate funding.

 

HIV / AIDS Initiative Update