Training educators capable of leading, innovating, and accompanying young people: this was the ambition of the major Salesian Teachers’ Days, held from August 10 to 17, 2026, in Riaba, a municipality of Malabo in Equatorial Guinea. Among the participants were Salesian Cooperators from the Don Bosco Province of Port-Gentil, who attended the gathering as independent observers.
Organised by the Network of Salesian Schools of the Central Equatorial Africa Province (RESAEC), the gathering focused on “Salesian Leadership in the Educational Institutions of the Daughters of Mary Help of Christians.” It brought together delegations from Gabon, Cameroon, Congo-Brazzaville, Chad, and Equatorial Guinea.
A Mass, welcoming addresses, and a procession of delegations opened these days dedicated to strengthening the skills of teachers and school administrators.
The conferences explored student leadership in the light of Don Bosco’s Preventive System, the leadership of educators in the African context, and the mission of Christian educators. Discussions also addressed educational planning at school and classroom levels, as well as the distinctive features of Salesian leadership in FMA educational institutions.
Entrepreneurship as a skill for teacher-leaders was illustrated through the testimony of Paco, a young entrepreneur from Equatorial Guinea. Leadership in evangelisation, meanwhile, was examined from the perspective of Salesian school pastoral ministry and digitalisation. Workshops on website creation and the use of Google Drive completed the programme.
These days concluded with excursions and a closing Mass.
Participants included teachers from Salesian educational institutions in Libreville, Port-Gentil, and Oyem, as well as the National Chaplain of Catholic Schools in Gabon. The Salesian Cooperators who took part in these days introduced others to their lay vocation within the Salesian Family.
Each evening, cultural activities extended the exchanges and showcased the richness of the different delegations. In Riaba, learning to educate better also meant fostering encounters and fraternity.
The next gathering has been scheduled, God willing, for 2029 in Libreville, Gabon!
Édith BISSIEMOU, sc
