SOUTH AFRICA:Funding missions after key people depart was a core issue at a recent conference, writes Joe Humphreysin Hartbeespoort , South Africa
Though she hits 75 in August, Sr Barbara Armstrong is loath to retire.
Over the past 27 years, the Dubliner has worked in healthcare in Zimbabwe, building up a 120-bed hospital in the Buhera district, and introducing a range of programmes for HIV/Aids.
"Everything comes through me at the moment," she says, without a hint of boastfulness. "I have kind of been the pin. It will be different when I'm gone." The soft-spoken nun is typical of many Irish missionaries who, now in their twilight years, fear that the legacy of their development work will die off with their own departure.
Fewer than 3,000 Irish missionaries remain globally, and the average age is close to 70 years, according to the Irish Missionary Resource Service (IMRS).
It is with this in mind that Sr Armstrong and more than 20 other Irish missionaries from across southern Africa gathered this week in Hartbeespoort, near Pretoria, in South Africa.
"We are not good managers, really," said the hospital matron, a member of the Little Company of Mary congregation. "We have to start thinking about building capacity and not just dealing with the immediate needs of the people in our care."
Time is of the essence, says Mike Greally, head of the IMRS, a Government-backed funding agency for the sector that hosted the three-day conference.
"We have probably a maximum of 10 years to manage the transition," he said. "If people stay in their projects until they fall, there will be no continuity." The meeting was the first of four missionary "summits" being hosted by the IMRS in Africa and South America in the coming months.
Mr Greally said the aim was to help Irish missionaries become better-organised to exploit funding opportunities, as well as to explore development strategies in areas such as HIV/Aids.
The IMRS was established in 2004 as a funding mechanism for the missionary sector. While it is independent of Irish Aid, the development arm of the Department of Foreign Affairs, it is wholly funded by that agency - to the tune this year of €16 million.
Mr Greally said he expected that allocation to rise despite the falling number of Irish missionaries. This depended upon the missionary sector adapting to modern donor criteria.
"The reality is the Government gives money to Irish missionaries because of the individuals involved. We are now pushing the work they do, and not the individuals themselves. If we can persuade Irish Aid that the work holds up - and it does - then Irish Aid can continue funding." The key issue is whether Irish Aid will continue to support projects started by an Irish missionary but handed over to African, or other non-Irish, personnel.