Vision

 “A fairer society, a more viable world and a more livable environment”.

Mission

Promote the search for lasting solutions to the problems of Malagasy society, in favor of and with the poor, in the economic, political, socio-cultural, ecological and religious dimensions.

Values

FEFIE : Faith – Commitment – ​​Fraternity – Integrity – Excellence

Leitmotif:

“Faith Committed to Justice”

General presentation of the entity

The Arrupe Madagascar Center (CA MDG), formerly known as the “Arrupe Social Center” (CSA) has officially existed since May 15, 2005, the date of the inauguration of its headquarters within the ECAR Faravohitra Antananarivo compound. . It is a work of the Society of Jesus in Madagascar under the coordination of the Social and Ecological Apostolate. The purpose of the Arrupe Center is based on putting into practice the commitment of the Society of Jesus: “The service of faith and the promotion of justice”, according to its 32nd General Congregation.

Brief descriptions of CA MDG Programs

PSF Health and Family Program

PSF’s mission is to raise awareness, protect, promote and transmit the values ​​of a healthy and harmonious family. Indeed, it turns to families, parents, young people, and men and women to share and bring to life a vision of mutual respect, common commitments and a spirit of dialogue. The PSF also contributes to reduce violence against women and girls, major scourges that undermine the balance and harmony of Malagasy society.

PRD Research and Documentation Program

The PRD is a pivotal program between all the programs of the Arrupe Center. Its actions are preceded by scientific research, supported by field surveys, analyzes and expert interviews. The PRD is responsible for designing and distributing the official publications of the Arrupe Center, and takes charge of the management of the Library

Citizen Participation and Economic Efficiency Program PCE

The PCE program was set up to strengthen the training and education activities of the Arrupe Center. It helps to strengthen political commitments at local, regional and national level, and the entrepreneurial spirit of young people.

Environment and Sustainable Development Program EDD

The ESD program echoes the call of Pope Francis in his encyclical“Laudato ‘Si”.It participates in promoting this ecological spirit and makes a link between the objectives of sustainable development and the environment to better take care of our common home. It aims to raise collective awareness of the consequences of policies, individual choices and production methods on our environment.

The Health and Family Program, with the African Jesuit Aids Network since its creation

PSF’s primary activities in the fight against HIV/AIDS

The Pastoral of Health and Family (PSF) is an entity set up within Center Arrupe since 2005, date of its inauguration, where we saw the participation of Mgr Michael Czerny, founder of AJAN, for supporting the implementation of HIV/AIDS-related activities at the Centre. Indeed, PSF was known for its initial activities in the fight against HIV / AIDS, with the aim of reducing and eradicating this scourge, among many others prevention through the education of the population of all categories of age, emphasizing the preference for young adolescents and also for people who are excluded and victims of discrimination in our society.

Two main areas have been selected for this purpose, these are the northern regions, located 60 km from Antananarivo: Andriampamaky and Anjozorobe, grouping together 50 local churches located in the bush, with approximately 200,000 inhabitants, where access to health and education presented some challenges. The objective was to contribute to stabilizing and reducing the HIV/AIDS prevalence rate to less than 1% in Madagascar, to strengthen prevention within the population by promoting risk-free behavior in the face of HIV/AIDS, and to take taking care of pvhiv patients in the regions concerned.

The activities related to this constant fight were: sharing and exchanges to inform and inform the target population about HIV/AIDS, HIV and Syphilis counseling and testing, mass animation and sports activities, support for people living with HIV, and rural development.

2008, Education Focal Points

Since 2008, the bishops’ conferences of Madagascar have invited the episcopal commissions to develop an educational tool for all categories of people (children, young people, adolescents, parents, teachers, health workers, etc.), the CA MDG was among the designers of this tool or training program called Education for Life and Love – EVA, the main themes entrusted to CA MDG were focused on bioethics and Natural Family Planning. Since 2010, a weekly radio program on Radio Don Bosco Madagascar has been produced with the collaboration of the episcopal commissions Family, Health and Education. The PSF team acted as the main coordinator and presenter of this renowned program, as the radio is received in all 22 dioceses of Madagascar, with approximately 3,600. 000 regular listeners according to research carried out by those in charge of Radio Don Bosco. In 2014, this program was also reinforced by the publication of AHAPPY (AJAN HIV/AIDS Prevention Program for Youth), especially for young people. The PSF had the opportunity to receive the AJAN team for a training of trainers on AHAPPY in 2019, the educational institutions of the Jesuits, with some Catholic establishments benefited from this training and are now in the process of appropriating and applying the document as one subject among many others in the school curriculum.
The fight against violence, a march with the most vulnerable
In addition, the PSF committed in 2019 to the fight against violence against girls and women (LVFF), which breaks up several families and flouts fundamental human rights. According to statistics on Gender-Based Violence (GBV) in Madagascar, 31% of girls and women have already suffered one form of violence: 26% of victims suffer physical violence, 24% psychological and emotional violence, 39 % are abandoned by their spouse and 11% are victims of sexual violence. (source: http://www.education.gov.mg/luttecontre-les-violences-faites-aux-femmes/ – March 2019). Some international organizations, the State, and NGOs are actively fighting against the seriousness of this scourge in our country; but despite these sustained efforts, there is still a lot to do, especially because of certain economic, social and cultural factors, which favor the different kinds of violence against the female gender. The consequences are numerous and are harmful psychologically, professionally, emotionally, physically, socially, etc. The CA MDG is committed to this fight, by offering training series on gender development, support for victims, participatory gender audit, research on a specific theme, reflection workshops, and various sensitizations. . The overall objective is to contribute to the prevention and reduction of violence against girls and women, thus improving the living conditions of women and strengthening their autonomy.
Success Stories
Despite the circumstances and contexts linked to HIV/AIDS, the CA MDG, after carrying out research on the factors favoring the adherence of PLWHAs to treatment, restructured its activities on the support and care of PLWHAs in difficulty. The CA MDG works with all the networks working in this continual fight, and is known to serve the most vulnerable in the care.
After carrying out rural development activities in the Andriampamaky region in 2014, the good practices acquired by the population on modern agricultural and livestock techniques are continuously practiced in this region in this year 2021, thanks to our follow-up punctual and exchanges with the inhabitants.
The AHAPPY Program, having reinforced the Program on EVA, the CA MDG is visibly known and serves as a reference for training in these areas. Requests for training, documents, exchanges or research have increased in recent years despite the fact that many institutions and organizations also carry out activities relating to these themes, in particular Catholic establishments that promote EVA. in schools.
The year 2019 was our start date for activities on Combating Violence against Girls and Women. Currently CA MDG is more involved in this fight and also serves as a reference center by supporting victims in all areas. This activity also allowed us to strengthen our visibility, given the diversified areas of intervention for this activity, not to mention the collaborations won with networks for the fight against violence and resource persons.