Society Matters | Volume 31 No. 2 | Winter 2021

Volume 31 No. 2 | Winter 2021 4 Educating the young in Madagascar helps build a brighter future Madagascar is one of the poorest countries in the world and opportunities for young people to gain an education and advance themselves are few, but thanks to the work of the Divine Word Missionaries, some children are being given the chance to complete school and look ahead to a brighter future. Fr Vishal D’Souza SVD says the Divine Word Missionaries in Madagascar are thankful to the SVD AUS Province and its partners in mission for supporting their projects aimed at giving poor children a good educational start in life. These projects are taking place in the parishes of Vohilava and Ambohitsara in the diocese of Mananjary. Vohilava has 82 out-stations and Ambohitsara has 57 out-stations, which are in the care of the SVD. “The villages have no proper access to good education,” he says. “Though there are government-run primary schools in interior villages, the quality of education is very poor. Often the teachers do not show up and the schools lack basic infrastructure. “We help our Catholic children to pursue their secondary schooling in the towns nearby. We encourage them to study in the schools run by nuns, so that they can continue their studies and their spiritual needs are also well met. “We usually pay their school fees and lodging and the food is taken care of by their family. That way, the family also participates in the upbringing of their children and do not depend too much on priests.” Fr D’Souza says that in the District of Ambohitsara, the SVD has three primary and one higher primary schools. And in the Parish of Ipasa in the Diocese of Fianarantsoa, there are eight out-stations, each with a primary school run by the parish. The SVD also has two higher primary schools in the out-stations. “We help the poor students by minimising their school fees and also buying for them books and other necessary items needed in the school,” he says. “Sometimes we also help our youth to study in the universities in Antananarivo or in Fianarantsoa. Some also opt for the job-oriented training courses, so we pay their course fees as well. Mission Mass League - let us pray for you and your family Have you heard of The Mission Mass League? It is the prayer association of the Society of the Divine Word and it has been in operation around the world for more than 100 years. The Mission Mass League was canonically established by the Divine Word Missionaries in 1910. Its purpose is to help serve your spiritual needs and support the ministry of the Divine Word Missionaries. We invite our faithful mission partners to participate in the Mission Mass League by enrolling their loved ones, living or deceased, and their special needs. “Enrolment in the League is a spiritual gift,” says SVD AUS Province Mission Secretary, Fr Viet Nguyen SVD. “It expresses the donor’s thoughtfulness or their condolences. Enrolments are appropriate in illness or for a death. Enrolments may also be sent to Divine Word