The Sisters of St Joseph of the Apparition, who run schools in Blata l-Bajda, Sliema and Paola, as well as residences in Malta, have congregations in several other countries. Three years ago they moved to Ethiopia, where a centre is being built for poor children roaming the streets and children with heart disease. Francesca Vella spoke to Sr Bernadette Galea to find out more about the sisters’ mission in one of Africa’s poorest countries

Sr Bernadette explained that the sisters of St Joseph of the Apparition were invited to Ethiopia by the Archbishop of Addis Ababa, Mgr Berhanyesus Souraphiel.

“To be able to remain in Ethiopia, all foreign residents have to belong to some kind of project. The first three sisters of St Joseph were accepted as teachers in the educational project of the Catholic Cathedral School of the Archdiocese of Addis Ababa.”

Up to last August, the sisters were living in a rented house, but the congregation has now bought a house. Seeing and experiencing the needs of the people around them, the sisters are now raising money to be able to work on a project in their own garden.

The congregation of the Sisters of St Joseph of the Apparition is an international congregation with communities in 28 countries. It is directed by the superior general and her council, but for the sake of better organisation and a more efficient administration the different countries are grouped into provinces and delegations.

Sr Bernadette said: “Our province is made up of Malta, Tunisia and Ethiopia. As at the moment, I am the provincial superior of these countries, so the responsibility for the sisters in Ethiopia falls on me and my council.”

Talking about the current project in Ethiopia, Sr Bernadette mentioned a lady doctor who belongs to the Italian Melanie Association that sponsors sick children from poor families in Ethiopia to take them to Sudan for heart surgery.

“She has been bringing the children with their mothers to our house on their way to Sudan for heart surgery. As these children are sick, they need to stop half-way along the journey to rest.”

Every month about eight to 12 children stop over at the sisters’ house with their mothers, both going to and returning from Sudan.

The sisters offer them free lodging, meals and care in their small house for about a week. Now the diocese has asked the community of Sisters of St Joseph to open up their doors to other poor people coming to hospitals in Addis Ababa, the Ethiopian capital. But to be able to do so, the sisters need more space.

“This is not all. There are many children roaming the streets and we want to do something for them too. We intend organising a small study centre, where these children can come to do their homework and be encouraged to go to school. We might have summer camps too. But again, we need space.”

The sisters plan to construct a small building in the garden of their house. The project was meant to start being implemented last August, but the sisters have had to change their original plan.

A portion of the sisters’ land was taken away from them because a road had to be built. So, instead of building two storeys, they will be using a smaller area on three storeys. There will be a hall on the ground floor that will be used for educational purposes; the first and second floors will be used for the sick children undergoing heart surgery (and others).

Sr Bernadette said the sisters came up with the idea of this project almost as soon as they arrived in Ethiopia.

“When we saw the extreme poverty around us, we could not resist the idea of doing something concrete for those children. The Comboni Sisters, from whom we had rented a house, already used to provide lodging for sick children on their way to Sudan for heart surgery.”

The Sisters of St Joseph were asked if they could carry on receiving these poor children; they accepted, but had to find a solution to the problem of space.

“The way the children around the house used to rush to us when they saw us on the road was another reason that urged us to do something for them. We had come up with the idea to build a few rooms as a humble centre for these Ethiopians.

“The rewards are great; there are many people who need our help, and although it will only be a drop in the ocean, we trust in the Lord that we will find some more benefactors who will be moved to help us financially.”

The centre will cater for poor children who roam the streets and children with heart disease, irrespective of whether they’re Catholic, Orthodox or Muslim. The sisters want to help them have a better life and be better educated.

The sisters’ house lies on a street at the heart of a popular area where residents belong to different religions. The area is not far from the main road where there are the premises of the African Union.

Sr Bernadette said most people in their area are poor and unemployed, so young people are sometimes aggressive against people who seem well to do or educated.

People live in compounds, each surrounded by zinc sheets, which normally house 10 to 12 families living in zinc shacks.

“We found out that these zinc or mud rooms are expensively rented to these people by the government. The poverty within these compounds looks extreme.”

Asked about the difficulties faced with respect to the actual construction of the centre, Sr Bernadette said the process to obtain all the necessary permits can be long and unbearable.

Ethiopia being a developing country, Sr Bernadette said there can be surprises when dealing with certain offices for authorisations.

She recalled the particular episode regarding part of their land having been taken away from them due to the construction of a road.

“When all was agreed with the owner, just before signing the contract, we found out that a big part of our garden was going to be taken away by the government because a road had to be built. This meant that we lost the width of about four metres along the front wall of the compound.

“We also lost another portion, about a metre in width, because it didn’t show up in the aerial view of the land. Technically it belonged to us and we argued over it for months, but in the end we had to give in, otherwise we would have never moved into our house. We commissioned a different architect and a different contractor and fresh plans were made.”

Another difficulty encountered in Ethiopia, explained Sr Bernadette, is the fact that certain people such as contractors and architects are very unreliable.

“The convent was ready seven months ago, but we are still repairing work that was badly done, in spite of constant supervision.”

She explained that, while the house for the sisters has been completed, they were faced with a number of difficulties when it came to the actual centre, which will be on the same compound as the sisters’ house.

The sisters had to be housed first because they had to return the house they had rented to its owners.

Work on the centre should start soon, and it is expected to be completed within eight to 10 months. The cost of the project is expected to be at least €135,000, but this excludes the money that would be necessary for furnishings.

“So far, we have received €18,000 from the Foreign Affairs Ministry’s overseas development plan. Another €24,000 was collected from activities organised in our schools, as well as from friends and benefactors.

“Now that the contract has been signed, we have had to give a big deposit to the contractor. I am confident that God will provide the necessary.

“‘He hears the cry of the poor and never abandons them’, but He also ‘loves a cheerful giver’. Therefore we count on the generosity of the Maltese people who never failed to answer to a need. The Lord will reward his people as He promised his disciples ‘Rejoice for your names will be written in heaven’.”

Donations can be made by sending a cheque payable to The Sisters of St Joseph (Ethiopia) to: The Sisters of St Joseph, 324, Rue d’Argens, Gzira GZR 1363.

Donations may also be made directly to any of the sisters at the convents in Blata l-Bajda, Gzira, Paola, Rabat, Sliema or Zabbar. It should be specifically stated that the donation is for the project in Ethiopia.