An initiative that fosters partnerships between conferences and missions across the South Pacific is yielding encouraging results.
Established about 20 years ago, Partners in Mission is experiencing a renewed focus, aiming to strengthen collaboration, resource sharing and mutual support between conferences and missions.
To encourage active participation, the South Pacific Division (SPD) invited each conference-mission partnership to report on their achievements in 2024. A financial incentive of $A5000 per report was offered to be shared between the partners. The best overall report would receive an additional $5000, while the runners-up prize was set at $3000.
Last week, the SPD administration team announced the winners. Best Partnership Reports were awarded to:
- North New Zealand Conference and Bougainville Mission
- South Queensland Conference and Morobe Mission
- South Queensland Conference and Vanuatu Mission
Greater Sydney, with its partners Solomon Islands, Cook Islands and American Samoa Missions, shared the runners-up prize.
Partners in Mission supports a variety of collaborative activities, including prayer partnerships, resource sharing, exchange visits, training and mentoring.
During the 2024 PNG for Christ campaign, a number of conference leaders and pastors visited and preached in their respective partner areas, reinforcing connections and gaining firsthand experience of the ministry work on the ground in these territories.
The impact of Partners in Mission can be seen in the various partnership activities. The North New Zealand Conference, for example, has assisted Bougainville Mission in acquiring a boat, funded through contributions from church members. The boat will improve connectivity with atolls and remote church communities. Additionally, the Conference’s youth department is planning a fly’n’build outreach in Bougainville to support infrastructure and mission needs.
Another partnership activity saw the South Queensland Conference general secretary Pastor Joseph Maticic travel to Port Vila, Vanuatu, as a guest speaker for Efate district meetings.
“The benefit of the visit was to further enhance the partnership, see firsthand the Vanuatu Mission, and provide investment in and development of the Mission leaders,” he reported.
Other partnerships have been established between:
- Victorian Conference and Samoan Mission
- Victorian Conference and New Britain and New Ireland Mission
- South New Zealand Conference and New Caledonia Mission
- Western Australian Conference and Northern and Milne Bay Mission
- North New South Wales Conference and Fiji Mission
“We are very thankful for the active participation taking place across the region,” SPD secretary Pastor Mike Sikuri said. “Thank you for having a local and global view for mission. Together we are stronger.”
