Mr. Gemechis Ebisa Aga
Communication Department
Director

Western Ethiopia Union Mission Communication Department
Philosophy

There are many forms of communicative media available to the Church today, and the Communication Department is committed to using all of these means in sharing with the world the good news of salvation. Especially effective in accomplishing God’s mission are media organizations and evangelistic ministries, working in cooperation with pastors and laypersons.
Because communication of the gospel is the responsibility of the entire Church, the Communication Department is involved in all the programs of the Church; seeking to serve both administrators and departments with the skills it possesses to further these programs. The Communication Department assists administrators and other Church leaders in communicating organizational policies and initiatives to both internal and external publics. In addition, the department interprets to administration the attitudes of these publics toward the Church. The department also provides crisis communication expertise and response systems.

Vision

The vision of the Communication Department is to present a favorable image of the Church, its mission, and its life and activities, as well as to assist the Church in being an effective witness of the loving and saving grace of Jesus Christ.
Activities of the department enable “Seventh-day Adventists to communicate hope by focusing on the quality of life that is complete in Christ.” Thus, the ECD Communication Department fulfills a role in effectively promulgating the everlasting gospel and building bridges of hope.

Objective

The objective of the department is to reach society, both within the Church and externally, with an open, responsible, and hope-filled communication program through the effective use of contemporary technologies and methods of communication.

Functions and Services

The communication program includes:
1. News and information services, such as Adventist News Network (ANN), the appointed news agency of the Church.
2. A public relations program which includes promotion of awareness programs aimed at positively representing the Seventh-day Adventists within the community and implementing local and global Church identity programs; and
3. Effective use of media and contemporary communication systems and technologies (such as Twitter, Telegram, YouTube, Facebook, Text message, and using Joint institutions such as Hope Channels of Ethiopia and AWR)

Corporate Union -Wide Coordination

Effectiveness of the communication ministry requires coordinating media exposure for the Union. These include:
1. Assistance to communication departments and entities of the Fields/ conferences in implementing corporate communication strategies; and
2. Cooperative involvement with the varied Church communication delivery systems and media entities.