The Diocese of London has signed an agreement with the Anglican Church of Mozambique and Angola to renew the ALMA (Angola London Mozambique Association) Partnership Covenant for a further 10 years, until July 2032.
At the Lambeth Conference in Canterbury, bishops and guests from London, Mozambique and Angola came together to witness the re-signing of the ALMA Covenant with scripture and song.
Originally signed on 10 July 1998, the ALMA Covenant has greatly enhanced the links between the Diocese of London and Anglican churches in Mozambique and Angola. In the nearly 25 years since the partnership began, 44 London parishes have twinned with parishes in Angola and Mozambique and 6 schools have formally twinned, whilst others continue to develop partnerships.
In recent years especially, this partnership has flourished, with Nampula becoming a diocese in 2017 and a further 8 new dioceses being formed in 2022 alone. Today, Mozambique and Angola are the 42nd Province of the Anglican Communion, with 12 bishops in total, who all came to the UK for this year’s Lambeth Conference.
Importantly, the ALMA partnership – and the fundraising and support provided by parishes in the Diocese of London – has delivered real benefits for communities in Angola and Mozambique. Projects in recent years have included the Diocesan Lent Appeal 2020, where £52,000 was raised for partner dioceses responding to the devastation caused by two cyclones in Mozambique and a severe drought in Southern Angola. With this money, the partner dioceses were able to purchase four trucks, which were used to transport essentials such as food and construction materials to remote affected areas.
Projects such as the ALMA ‘Tutudesk’ initiative have improved educational resources within both countries. This innovative project provided durable plastic lap desks to African schoolchildren in disadvantaged schools who did not have access to conventional classroom desks.
Bishop of Edmonton and the ALMA Chair, the Rt Revd Rob Wickham, commented:
“The ALMA Partnership Covenant has been pivotal in deepening our relationship with the Anglican Church of Mozambique and Angola. Since signing the agreement in 1998, the Diocese of London has worked on projects to fight against key issues in both countries such as natural disasters, malaria and HIV / AIDS.
Joining fellow bishops and guests from across the globe was a joy, and I very much look forward to working even closer with partners in both these countries over the next 10 years as we continue to learn and praise God together.”
Bishop of London, the Rt Revd and Rt Hon Dame Sarah Mullally, added:
“It was a privilege to join my fellow bishops and guests from the global Anglican community to pray, sing and re-sign this important agreement. This Covenant reflects our commitment to helping and working with Anglican churches, communities and schools worldwide as we continue to campaign on matters such as poverty, education and climate change on a global scale.”
Carlos Matsinhe, the Bishop of Lebombo, Mozambique, commented:
“ALMA, literally meaning ‘soul’ in Portuguese has indeed been and worked as the soul that keeps profound sentiments of Christian fellowship in which its members, at all levels, give and take free, teach and learn silently, share the burdens and celebration and, see and love one another as Christ has loved every committed member of the Diocese of London and of those of Mozambique and Angola. No doubt this is a transforming gift of God that we intend to offer those of our dioceses in the next ten years and beyond. To God be the glory!”