History was written for the Church in Papua New Guinea as the first-ever VIVAT International Workshop was held from 14th to 18th September 2026 at the SVD Conference Centre, Madang, with the theme: “Choose Life: Protect Life, Nurture and Thrive”
The landmark workshop, sponsored by the three VIVAT member congregations in PNG – the Missionary Sisters Servants of the Holy Spirit (SSpS), the Society of the Divine Word (SVD), and the Congregation of the Holy Spirit (CSSp) – brought together over 54 participants comprising members of Religious Congregations, Diocesan Priests, Youth, Caritas Coordinators, representatives of Other Churches and Lay people from across the country.
The workshop reflected on topical JPIC issues including Gender-Based Violence (GBV), Sorcery Accusation Related Violence (SARV), Ecology, Poverty and Youth Unemployment.
The workshop was facilitated by international resource persons: Sr. Gretta Fernandes, SSpS, Executive Secretary of VIVAT International, New York, who took participants through the meaning of VIVAT – “Life” – its goals, organizational structure and how PNG can be part of it; Fr. Richard Quadros, SVD, JPIC Coordinator of the SVD Generalate, Rome, who guided participants on developing Action Plans and presenting grassroots issues to the global level; and Fr. Fabian Kachi Adindu, CSSp, VIVAT Representative to the Human Rights Council in Geneva, who joined via Zoom and took participants through the UPR presentation, congratulating PNG for its engagement.
The workshop concluded with the formation of a 14-member National Coordinating Team, with Rev. Fr. George Kandwe Zubuga Ayikade, CSSp elected as the National Coordinator of the VIVAT National Network Group of PNG. This places a great responsibility on us as Spiritans and our involvement with JPIC issues as the above topical issues are very palpable to our confreres who live and work in PNG. Our confreres will not only be dealing with particular issues but a combination of these social challenges in their parish ministries. Participants were charged with the duty to take on board issues of JPIC with boldness and commit themselves and resources for this mission, a wakeup call for us to see how our participation in JPIC could be further strengthened.
Official Statement
At the end of the workshop, participants unanimously issued the following VIVAT – Justice, Peace and Integrity of Creation 2026 Statement:
VIVAT – Justice, Peace and Integrity of Creation 2026 Statement
We, the participants of VIVAT International Workshop comprising of members of Religious Congregations, Diocesan Priests, Youth, Other Churches and Lay people gathered at the SVD Conference Centre, Madang from the 14th-18th September 2026, reflected on the Theme: Choose Life: Protect Life, Nurture and Thrive.
We came together to reflect, share, broaden and strengthen our commitment to be a prophetic voice for the marginalized and our common home. We have heard and seen that our people suffer from Gender Based Violence, Sorcery Accusation Related Violence which destroys the dignity of life especially women and girls, that our oceans, forests and coastal villages are threatened by illegal logging, mining leading to Climate Change, Sea level rise and environmental degradation, that many of our young people are unemployed and without skills leading to frustration, crime, drug abuse and migration to urban centres, that poverty remains a daily reality for many families despite the richness of our land and sea.
We have seen the effort of Organizations such as Caritas, Melanesian Institute and the Government to address these emerging social menaces. However, there is still more to be done to curb these issues. We resolved to commit ourselves to our Action Plan, to prevent violence, to protect our environment from illicit practices, to empower our youth, to fight against poverty and to build a strong advocacy team through our VIVAT/Justice Peace and Integrity of Creation coordinators. We therefore call upon the Government, NGO’s, Church leaders and tribal leaders to work together to ensure that the dignity of every human person is protected, nurtured and enabled to thrive.
SVD Conference Centre, MADANG
18th September 2026
The new National Coordinating Team will now begin implementation of the Action Plan and work towards the next stage of VIVAT in Papua New Guinea.
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