The Pastoral and the Prophetic: Churches Advancing Food Sovereignty and Justice

For International Development Week 2026, The United Church of Canada is highlighting global partners contributing to the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals through faith-rooted leadership and justice. 

Across the continent, many African Instituted Churches (AICs) walk alongside communities where hunger, climate change, economic injustice, and conflict are daily realities. The Organization of African Instituted Churches (OAIC) accompanies these churches as they respond faithfully and practically to complex challenges. 

OAIC understands its role as integrating pastoral care and prophetic witness: meeting immediate needs while also strengthening communities’ abilities to shape the systems that affect their lives. 

By engaging in theological reflection and targeted training with regional resource teams, Theological Education by Extension tutors, and trainers of trainers in youth and children’s ministry, AICs are strengthened to support communities in living lives of dignity, grounded in their pastoral and prophetic role.

Additionally, the OAIC accompanies smallholder farmer communities through training, establishing seedbanks and demonstration farms, facilitating access to extension services and value addition, and strengthening farmer-to-farmer learning, all of which strengthens food sovereignty and climate resilience. Smallholder farmers, who produce the majority of Africa’s food, are supported as leaders and stewards rather than aid recipients.

At the same time, OAIC equips communities to engage in public policy and amplifies community voices in policy spaces—advocating for climate adaptation, peacebuilding, and accountability at local, national, regional, and international levels. 

Africa has among the highest numbers of teen pregnancies compared to other continents. The major cause of teen pregnancies is poverty. The OAIC partners with communities to address the challenges of teen pregnancy through the “Daughters of Dignity and Destiny (DDD)” initiative. DDD promotes socio-economic interventions by collaborating with communities, local government, churches, and schools. These include one-on-one counselling and mentoring, group therapy, and self-sustaining initiatives like establishing kitchen gardens and poultry keeping. Those latter two act as income-generating streams for the mothers and improve household nutritional outcomes, supporting their families’ livelihoods and school re-enrolment.

“I was hungry and you gave me food…” 
(Matthew 25:35)

Connections for Communities of Faith 

• Share a prayer for A Meal Time Blessing.
• Give to Mission and Service to help support Canadian and global partners working towards meeting the Sustainable Development Goals.
• Follow United Action for Justice on Facebook and Instagram, as well as United Church News and the Round the Table blog for more information on how your community of faith can get involved.
• Advocate: Ask your MP to ensure Canada meets its international assistance obligations, including funding for food security, climate adaptation, and youth well-being.
• Explore reflection questions crafted for your community of faith’s small groups, youth groups, or Sunday schools in the downloadable document below 

The views contained within these blogs are personal and do not necessarily reflect those of The United Church of Canada.