Members of six women congregations have come together to empower “youth at risk” in Bengaluru, a southern Indian city with more than 3 million youth. “This is the perfect example of synodality in action as envisaged by Pope Francis,” said Apostolic Carmel Sister Maria Nirmalini, leader of the Conference of Religious India, representing the country’s more than 130,000 Catholic women and men. The “Sisters Led Youth Initiatives” project is jointly implemented by the members of the Apostolic Carmel, the Daughters of Mary Help of Christians, the Missionary Sisters of Mary Help of Christians, the Salesian Missionaries of Mary Immaculate, the Poor Handmaids of Jesus Christ, and the Sisters of St Joseph of Tarbes. “Our aim is to make youth dream high, think better and act great,” said Sister Jane Wakahiu, head of the Catholic Sisters Initiative, which supports nearly 1,200 young people under the program. The Kenyan nun was speaking at the March 19 graduation ceremony for the first batch, mostly women who were trained in vocational skills by the six congregations. “Women religious in India have played significant roles in empowering youth at risk, especially the vulnerable women in society,” observed Wakahiu, a member of the institute of the Little Sisters of St. Francis. Sabrina Wong, a project officer who oversees the project in India, finds the program’s uniqueness in the “beauty of various religious congregations working together to empower the youth.” Nirmalini, who is also the superior general of her congregation, told GSR that the women congregations in India will experiment more with such collaborative projects as part of its strategic plan. On the occasion, the Conference of Religious Women India released its strategic plans for the next five years.
The 2024-29 plan stresses projects and programs to empower youth, women and underprivileged populations in India, to be implemented as a partnership project of nuns from different congregations. Nirmalini, who chaired the graduation ceremony, said the program reinforces the feeling that “we are not alone” and “we are for everyone.” She applauded the congregations for coming forward to empower the weaker sections.