The Apostolic Vicariate of Donkorkrom in Ghana’s Eastern Region erected as a prefecture on June 12, 2007, and elevated to a vicariate on Tuesday, January 19, 2010, has over the years received less media visibility on its numerous activities in both the church and mainstream media due to the lack of personnel and remoteness of the jurisdiction.
This trend of lack of media visibility changed through the zeal of Sr. Sylvie Lum Cho, a Sister of the Missionary Sisters of Our Lady of the Holy Rosary (MSHR), who has ventured into the communication apostolate by making all the efforts to bring the numerous activities of the Vicariate to the doorsteps of the Ghanaian and international audience through her extensive reportage on her congregation and the Vicariate.
Though not a fully trained media communication expert, her desire to report has always made her focus on the activities of her congregation and in the remotest areas of the vicariate. Since 2021, Sr. Sylvie has lived and worked in Donkorkrom as the Vocation Directress for her Congregation in Ghana and later the coordinator of the Vicariate’s Department of Social Communications (DEPSOCOM).
A native of Akum and a parishioner of St. Pius X Parish, Akum, in the North West Region of Cameroon in Central Africa, 36-year-old Sr. Sylvie’s zeal for making her congregation visible and traveling the length and breadth of the Vicariate to gather news and publicise activities in the media, emanated from her participation in a two Media and Communications Trainings organized by the Conference of Major Superiors of Religious in Ghana (CMSR-GH) and the Conrad-Hilton Foundation in Kumasi. In 2024, Sr. Sylvie also had the opportunity to represent the Apostolic Vicariate at a news reporting workshop organized by The Catholic Standard, the National Catholic Newspaper.
The training came after the former Apostolic Nuncio to Ghana, the Most Rev. Henryk M. Jagodzinski in October 2022, stressed the need for the Catholic Church in Ghana to be more visible in all parts of the country and urged the Religious Congregations working in Ghana to take up the challenge. Interacting with members of the Conference of Major Superiors of Religious during their Bi-annual Meeting at Koforidua Diocesan Pastoral and Training Centre on October 12, 2022, the Nuncio said: “The Church needs to intensify its visibility by publicizing activities that are having positive impacts on Ghanaians.”
Since her training, she gathers at least four news items every week and has published about 150 stories on some activities of her congregation and the Vicariate in the Ghanaian and international media including the Catholic Standard Newspaper, NewsWatch Ghana, Vatican News, Catholic Trends and L’osservatore Romano. As one of the trainees, she became a pioneer of the Catholic Sister Communicators Network, Ghana (CASCON-GH) of which she has been elected as the Secretary, a testimony of her interest, exposure, and enthusiasm for news and feature article writing and coverage in the media ministry.
Bishop of the Apostolic Vicariate of Donkorkrom, the Most Rev. John Alphonse Asiedu of the Society of Divine Word (SVD) has this to say: “Soon after she arrived in the Vicariate, Sr. Sylvie showed special talent and interest in communication and so I requested her to help organize our Department of Social Communication (DEPSOCOM) and appointed her the Coordinator of the department.”
In an interview with Newswatchgh.com in Donkorkrom, the Bishop described Sr. Sylvie as an asset to the Vicariate, saying, “With the use of simple rudimentary gadgets, Sr. Sylvie has projected the Vicariate so much that people now know about activities in the Vicariate. Indeed, she has projected the general life situation and the pastoral activities of the Vicariate to the outside world to the admiration of many.
“Sr. Sylvie is very talented and creative in writing stories with photos and video clips to tell the story about the socio-cultural life, pastoral work, spiritual activities, worship, and celebration of various occasions, as well as the challenges and the prospects of evangelization in the Vicariate, by utilizing the available and accessible social media platforms in the locality,” he said.
According to the Bishop, Sr. Sylvie’s report on his visit to the island missions traveling on a boat without a live jacket attracted Ghanaians to support the Vicariate with live jackets championed by Andy Manomey of the Accra Archdiocese.
“Sr. Sylvie’s initiatives, creativity, and dedication to the media ministry in a challenging environment like ours have impacted positively both internally within the Vicariate and externally outside the Vicariate, as her work has inspired hope, love, and solidarity across the board,” the Bishop stated.
The Vicariate is only accessible by a Ferry, referred to in local parlance as the ‘panthoon’ (a boat for carrying passengers, goods, and vehicles) or an engine boat. There is however a mainland road through Maame Krobo-Agogu, which is not very motorable. The inhabitants of the Vicariate are cut off from the rest of the country due to limited physical access. It is virtually a peninsula cut off on three sides by the Volta Lake and on the fourth by lack of a connecting road to the outside world.
There are hundreds of villages on several islands. It is estimated that as many as 80% of the people in the Afram Plains live below the poverty line. Migration in search of food and income to overcome poverty tends to disrupt the smooth development of the district, thereby affecting the creation of Parish communities and the growth of the Church.
Born on December 5, 1988, to Mr. Martin Cho Zama and Madam Emmerencia Shuri, all from Akum in the North West Region of Cameroon, Sr. Sylvie in an interview with Newswatchgh.com said: “What motivated me into this field of communication was principally the need to let my congregation known in Ghana and beyond and possibly attract some vocations. We have been in Ghana for so long, bereft of a Ghanaian in the Congregation.”
“When I attended the very first media training workshop in 2022, one of my major expectations shared was to learn how to use social media to promote vocations,” she said, adding, “And there, I was helped to reactivate my long-dormant Facebook account, and create pages for our Congregation here in Ghana and also our Holy Rosary School.”
According to Sr. Sylvie who is the 6th child in a family of seven, “It was not long after I reactivated my Facebook account and put up my photo on it that I received a request from a young lady from Benin Republic indicating interest to join us.”
“That made me realise that the media was a powerful tool after all. Then, I took it up from there, publicising our ministries through stories, photos, and videos,” she recalled.
Sr. Sylvie strongly feels that “It was through such write-ups and publicity of my congregation that the Bishop, who has been quietly reading my stories and others, picked interest and requested that I manage the Vicariate’s communications office.”
“Faced with this additional ministry and seeing the deprived and poverty-stricken nature of the area, I committed myself to let the world, including Ghanaians, know that such a needy place exists,” she remarked.
“So, amidst my other busy apostolates, I make sure I publicise every major event taking place in the Vicariate, both on the mainland and the Island, and the efforts have not been fruitless,” she indicated.
Adding, Sr. Sylvie said, “I have covered occasions in several communities within the Vicariate including Donkorkrom itself, Adeemra, Kwaekese, Kwasi Fante, Maame Krobo, Amankwakrom, Tease, Somsei, Bonkrom, Samenhyia, Kokrobuta, in the Islands among others.”
She expressed gratitude to her Holy Rosary Sisters working in the Vicariate for being supportive and understanding, as far as “my life and apostolates are concerned. The enabling atmosphere they provide allows me to function well enough to carry out my duties, both in the community, for the Congregation, the Conference, and the Vicariate.”
There have been commendations to Sr. Sylvie for venturing into this communication apostolate with alacrity and zeal, by her Sisters, friends, online followers, and other well-wishers.
“For my congregation, my sisters across the board are happy with what I am doing, and for that, I feel encouraged to do more. A good number of them, including my Congregational Leader, have either called or written to congratulate me for my efforts in projecting our Congregation to the world,” Sr. Sylvie said.
She indicated that “My Regional Leader and Sisters here in Ghana are happy with what I am doing for the Region and the Vicariate, and they support me in every way possible to keep up the spirit.”
Sr. Nkechi Caroline Oraebosi, Regional Leader of the Holy Rosary Sisters in Ghana, in an interview with Newswatchgh.com at Amankwakrom, described Sr. Sylvie as “an exceptional individual who embodies the values of compassion, dedication, and resilience”.
“Her passion for communication, evident in her outstanding commitment to using her knowledge and skills for the betterment of society is truly inspiring,” the leader said, adding that “She is not just a communicator but a communicator with a difference.”
Saying that Sr. Sylvie is grounded in her faith, the Regional Leader said throughout her teaching and pastoral works, she has consistently demonstrated a keen interest in the field of communication, actively participating in various academic and extra-curricular activities”.
Her excellent communication skills, both written and verbal have been evident in her presentations in the Vicariate of Donkorkrom and at the national level,” she stated, lauding her for finding fulfilment in the work she does.
Sr. Oraebosi said, “The Holy Rosary Sisters are bonded like a broom, hence, we are in support of the dedicated and zealous work of Sr. Sylvie”.
Sr. Sylvie is the Vocation Directress of her Congregation in Ghana and she has this to say: “Moved by the lack of vocations in Donkorkrom, I, together with my other Sisters began a vocation group at the Francis Xavier Cathedral with the hope of nurturing vocations to the Priesthood and Religious Life through it.”
“Not limiting myself to Donkorkrom alone, I have been to several Dioceses and Parishes in Ghana to promote vocations and all these movements are in a bit to secure future Ghanaian MSHR that will join us in the Lord’s vineyard and hold the fort when the Missionaries might no longer be in the picture. We continue to pray that our efforts do not go in vain,” she pointed out.
Sharing with Newswatchgh.com, her motivation for the Religious Life, Sr. Sylvie said: “With the presence of the MSHR in my village, I grew up nursing the desire to one day be like one of them. As a kid, I always admired their veils, especially when they are walking majestically up to the Altar to assist the priest in sharing Communion.”
Adding, she said “Also, among my elder siblings, around the age of 7, we used to act the ‘Mass’ and I would always play the role of the Sister. I will use my mother’s scarf to tie on my head as a veil, and come out to share the sliced banana ‘communion’ to the rest.”
“As a young girl, I was very committed to Church activities. I was a member of the Cadets of Mary, Parish Vocation group, which was facilitated by a Holy Rosary Sister, Sr. Virginia Okeke, and Readers / Lectors, and because of this, I hardly ever missed Masses. I always felt happy and peaceful being around the Church, apart from my home, and the school.
According to her “My desire to become a sister intensified after an invitation to attend an Aspirants meeting of the MSHR, then in Form Four. During that meeting, we were taught by Sr. Angela Ogor, MSHR to always pray and ask God to show us our Vocation, especially during Consecration at Mass, and God will answer our prayers.”
She said what made her convinced that she was called to MSHR and not any other Congregation, apart from her prayers, was the fact that, “even after the Holy Rosary Sisters encouraged me to attend several vocation camps, so that I can have the opportunity to meet and know other congregations, I didn’t feel moved by any one of them, and once, I found myself during one of the camps gathering other young girls to talk to them the little I knew about MSHR when I noticed there was no Holy Rosary Sister around, instead of going to listen to sisters from other congregations.”
Sr. Sylvie acquired her First School Leaving Certificate at the St. Julius Primary School, Akum, in 2001, her General Certificate of Education (GCE) Ordinary Level at the Government Secondary School, Akum, in 2006, and her GCE Advanced level at the same school in 2008.
She began her Religious Formation in 2009 and did her First Profession on October 19, 2013, in Enugu, Nigeria. From there, she returned to her country of origin where she worked at the Catholic University Institute of Buea, in the South West Region of Cameroon from 2014 to 2016 in various capacities including Campus Minister, Student Government Association (STUGA) facilitator, and Volunteerism Network Program Coordinator.
Later, she undertook a three-year undergraduate course in Curriculum Studies and Teaching, English at the University of Buea, and graduated with a Bachelor of Education (B.Ed) in 2018. From 2018-2020, she served as Vice Principal and Acting Principal as well as an English teacher at the Holy Rosary Integrated Comprehensive Technical College Bamendankwe, Cameroon.
Prior to her Perpetual Vows, she did a No-Award Undergraduate Course in Spirituality and Religious Formation/Theology at the Tangaza University College, Eastern Africa from 2020-2021, and returned to Cameroon for her Perpetual Vows on September 29, 2021. She was then assigned to Ghana same year in December where she has been serving to date.
Sr. Sylvie’s work should be an encouragement to other Sisters to aspire for the Communication ministry in their various congregations. Her work in the DEPSOCOM Office of the Apostolic Vicariate of Donkorkrom should also be an inspiration to other Diocesan DEPSOCOM Offices in Ghana to give maximum visibility to their Diocese’ activities both in the Church and secular media locally or internationally.
Through her zealous efforts, the poor Donkorkrom Apostolic Vicariate has indeed gotten the needed visibility internationally which some Dioceses are yet to get. As a matter of fact, Publishing news or feature articles in an international Catholic media isn’t an easy one because the script goes through scrutiny and through the hands of many editors, at times lasting for weeks before they are published.
In the 2014 pastoral Congress guidelines on Social Communications by the Ghana catholic Bishops’ Conference, part of it states: “We need to revive and revitalise the Department of Social Communications in all our archdioceses and dioceses and provide guidelines for a responsible use of technological tools for our ministry.”
Despite some DEPSOCOM offices are doing well with little resources and equipment, i strongly think it is time the DEPSOCOM Offices, National and Diocesan, are revitalised because if the Donkorkrom DEPSOCOM Office is able give visibility to its activities through a Nun who isn’t a communication or media expert, then, it is evidential that more needs to be done in our Dioceses.
The choice of DEPSOCOM Directors also play a vital role in the communication ministry of the Church. This also an area the Church must critically look at. Bishop Asiedu chose Sr. Sylvie, though she isn’t an expert in media and communication apart from the short trainings organised by the Conference of Major Superiors for Sister Communicators in Ghana, and he is getting the needed results.
I also think it is time, our Bishops consider appointing Diocesan DEPSOCOM Directors as full-time workers rather than appointing them to handle the DEPSOCOM Offices and the same time manning Parishes. Unfortunately, some of these Parishes are nowhere near the Diocesan Secretariat for effective communication work.
INTER MIRIFICA, the Decree on the Media of Social Communications, solemnly promulgated by His Holiness Pope Paul VI on December 4, 1963 No. 3 states: “The Catholic Church, since it was founded by Christ our Lord to bear salvation to all men and thus is obliged to preach the Gospel, considers it one of its duties to announce the Good News of salvation also with the help of the media of social communication and to instruct men in their proper use.”
We, therefore, have a charge to keep: “Go into all the world and preach the Gospel to the whole creation” as recorded in Mk 16:15.
By Damian Avevor
