During a visit to the AMECEA Secretariat in Nairobi, Commission Secretary Bishop Alí Herrera reflected on a local saying that captured the essence of safeguarding: a road is judged not by how straight it runs, but by how many people can still walk it after the rains have come.

NAIROBI, Kenya (July 28, 2026) — The secretary of the Pontifical Commission for the Protection of Minors visited the Secretariat of the Association of Member Episcopal Conferences in Eastern Africa (AMECEA) on July 28, praising the region’s growing safeguarding efforts and emphasizing the importance of protecting young people through effective Church leadership and formation.

Bishop Luis Manuel Alí Herrera’s visit came two days after the close of the 21st AMECEA Plenary Assembly, which brought together more than 120 bishops from across Eastern Africa under the theme, “A Synodal Journey With Young People: Building Bridges of Communion, Hope, Justice and Good Governance.”

Founded in 1961, AMECEA serves 129 dioceses across the region and has maintained its headquarters in Nairobi since 1964. During the plenary assembly, Archbishop Gervas John Nyaisonga of Mbeya was elected chairman, while Very Rev. Fr. Andrew Kaufa, SMM, was appointed secretary-general.

In remarks to AMECEA staff and Church leaders, Alí Herrera highlighted the association’s commitment to safeguarding, including the establishment of a dedicated safeguarding office in 2019 and the launch of regional safeguarding guidelines – which have since then, guided the establishment of safeguarding structures across member conferences, with increased attention given to formation programs in major seminaries.

Reflecting on the importance of safeguarding, Bishop, Alí Herrera recalled a local saying he encountered during his visit:

“I am told that in this region a road is not judged by how straight it runs, but by how many people can still walk it after the rains have come,” he said. “I have been thinking of that image since I arrived, because it says, better than I could, what safeguarding is for.”

The bishop said AMECEA’s plenary theme closely reflected the mission of the Pontifical Commission for the Protection of Minors.

“A Church that walks with the young must be a Church in which the young are safe,” he said, adding that good governance means young people know where to seek help, trust they will be heard and see that action follows their concerns.

Alí Herrera stressed the importance of formation in preventing abuse, saying safeguarding efforts that begin only after priestly ordination come too late.

“What is shaped in formation is how a priest will carry authority for the rest of his life,” he said. “What is being built in this respect will still be bearing fruit decades from now.”

The secretary also outlined the work of the Pontifical Commission for the Protection of Minors, which was established by Pope Francis in 2014 and incorporated into the Roman Curia under the apostolic constitution Praedicate Evangelium. The commission received updated statutes from Pope Francis in June.

Referring to the pope’s call for a stronger culture of safeguarding throughout the Church, Alí Herrera said lasting change is built through consistent efforts in local communities.

“Such a culture is never made in an office in Rome,” he said. “It is made in a parish, a seminary, a small community, by people choosing the same thing again, quietly, for years.”

He concluded by returning to the image of the road that endures after heavy rains.

“That is the road I spoke of at the start,” he said. “It will never be perfectly straight, and it does not need to be. It only needs to hold, after the rains come, so that a child can still walk it.”