(By Polycarp Opio)
GANAL Provincial peace week is an annual event which is a brainchild of the catholic bishops from the Northern Ecclesiastical province popularly known as GANAL, an abbreviation which means, Gulu Arua Nebbi and Lira. It is held every year on rotational basis
The coming Peace week, the 14th edition of it, shall be hosted by the diocese of Lira from 21st to 25th of January 2019 at the diocesan headquarters. This event is estimated to attract over 8,000 pilgrims coming from the different parts of the dioceses within GANAL and outside.
The youth being the future of the church have embraced this move and preparation is on high gear as youth take on this starting from the Small Christian Community radiating it to their families.
For the peaceful development of a society it is crucial to ensure that its members posses skills to actively participate in and shape their communities for peaceful development. It is of paramount importance, that these skills begin to be facilitated at the young age.
The youth need to be educated about the meaning of peace and justice, as well as peace-building. They also need to be in a position to identify the gaps of peace and justice in their communities as well as to be aware of their responsibility to actively contribute to fill these gaps. Therefore the young people must be supported to discover their inner resources and be equipped with skills to use them to create change in their communities.