Asia Pacific YMCA held its Annual Executive Committee Meeting in Penang

Last Updated (Wednesday, 30 April 2025 19:06)

Communiqué- ECM APAY

Asia and Pacific Alliance of YMCAs

Executive Committee Meeting

Penang, Malaysia 4–6 April 2025

The Asia and Pacific Alliance of YMCAs (APAY) held its annual Executive Committee Meeting from 4^th – 6^th April 2025 which the YMCA of Penang, Malaysia hosted. Seventy-eight (78) registered delegates and representatives from nineteen (19) national movements in the Asia-Pacific region attended the meeting in person. It was a memorable occasion as Penang YMCA also hosted the APAY General Assembly in 2010.  Attending as partners and observers were Mr. Carlos Sanvee, Secretary General of the World Alliance of YMCAs, and Ms. Joan Wong, President of the Asia Pacific Area of Y’s Men International.

The meeting was called to order and was presided by Very Rev. Philip Thomas, President of APAY, and assisted by Mr. Nam Boo Won, General Secretary of APAY. Mr. Rovin Cincollagas, Chair of the YPLD, was appointed as the recording secretary. In his opening address, Fr. Philip observed that since the last ECM, in just a year, the world has totally changed in every aspect. He encouraged the YMCA to recreate new energies and new directions to face the challenges brought about by changes where human dignity is trampled upon. The role of the YMCA is to restore the dignity of human beings created in the image and likeness of God.

Mr. Carlos Sanvee, in his greetings, conveyed a message of solidarity from the World YMCAs to the YMCA and the people of Myanmar as they struggle to recover from the devasting earthquake. Ms. Joan Wong, in her greetings to the ECM recounted the strong relationship between YMI clubs and YMCAs and reaffirmed YMI as a mission partner supporting the work and programs of the YMCA.

Biblical Theological Reflections:

As a faith based social movement, Christian Foundation overarches all work and programs of the APAY. The ECM began each day with meaningful and participatory worship, followed by Biblical Theological Reflections (BTR) that set the tone for the day's discussions and deliberations.

In the first reflection Rev. Dr. AHN Jae Woong, chairperson of the board of trustees of National Council of YMCAs in Korea, spoke on the theme of Living with Hope. He shared that the YMCA is facing turbulent times ahead with overlapping crises of global warming, the economic gap between countries, the collapse of the multilateral cooperation system, the rise of new nationalism, ethnocentrism, and global impact from various recent policy changes in the United States. In such challenging times, the Theology of Hope becomes a Theology of Action that enables us to strive for freedom, peace, and justice in the current history.

Expounding on the theme “God’s Love in Us – Our Fuel for YMCA Mission” in the second BTR, Rev. Dr. Samuel Stephens, former President of APAY, reminded all that the Agape love of God is our foundation-- the engine that drives our service; the root of our resilience; energy that fuels the YMCA mission today.

In the third BTR, Rev. Dr. Toshimasa Yamamoto, Treasurer of APAY, reflected on the theme, “Who will roll away the stone for us?” Drawing lessons from the scripture, YMCAs need to reflect on the big stones that keep us in tombs that paralyse and prevent us from living with God’s hope. He spoke of Easter as a time of ‘new hope,’ encouraging YMCA members as “Easter People” to embody this spirit by confronting obstacles, living with hope, and advancing the mission and vision of the YMCA in service to communities left behind.

General Secretary and Committee Reports:

The General Secretary presented the 2024 Annual Report with 5 major program areas formulated at the Leaders Quadrennial Roundtable in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia in December 2023 -- Movement Strengthening, Youth Empowerment and Meaningful Work, Sustainable Planet, Community Wellbeing and Just World. Christian Foundation remains the bedrock and cross-cutting focus that undergirds each of the 5 program areas. Reports from the standing committees and task groups further highlighted the work and programs completed over the previous year. The ECM was reminded and urged to strengthen their commitment made at the General Assembly in Daejeon to be carbon net zero by 2030. Proposals were made for greater representation of women and young people in governance structure to include:

i.        30% women participation at the next General Assembly

ii.        APAY Board to include at least 2 youth and at least 2 women and the chair of the YPLD and Gender Equity Committee.

Conversation with World Alliance of YMCAs:

In the special sharing session, Carlos shared that the ‘One Movement’ mindset is about aligning our efforts across all levels of the Movement, ensuring we work together with shared goals and strategies while reducing duplication and enhancing collaboration to maximize our impact. On the issue of Christian identity, Carlos shared that the movement-wide conversation aims to produce a clarifying statement about the worldwide YMCA Movement’s collective Christian identity in a diverse and ever-changing world.

Special Session on Movement Strengthening

Movement Strengthening (MS) is a priority work to equip YMCAs with capacities needed to respond to the needs of the youth and the communities while maintaining its organization’s development. Five focus YMCAs (Laos, Cambodia, Mongolia, Timor-Leste and Vietnam) supported and mentored by Partner Support Groups presented their mission, vision, activities and challenges during the special movement strengthening session. Despite challenges of finances, governance, human resources and office equipment, many impactful activities and programmes were implemented, including: environmental education in schools; youth cultural and educational exchange (GATN); informal education for street children; language classes. Concluding the session, the APAY, PSG Members and the Focus YMCA signed the Partnership Agreement with the purpose of working together for the implementation of the organizational development plan under the movement strengthening program.

APAY Hong Kong Office matters:

APAY appreciates the willingness and efforts of World YMCA to form a Mediation Team to help resolve the misunderstandings between the Chinese YMCA of HK and the APAY. Given the complexities of the dispute, the EOECM in February 2025 resolved that the legal proceedings initiated by the Chinese YMCA need to be responded to in tandem with the mediation efforts of the World YMCA. The ECM remains hopeful for an amicable resolution that recognizes the original intent and historical agreements.

The APAY Honour Society, initiated in Korea as a community to financially support APAY's work and programs, conducted a fund-raising event at the welcome dinner hosted by the YMCA of Penang and the NCY of Malaysia. Membership can be individual or as a movement. The Honour Society is in collaboration with a Korean artist in fund raising efforts.

Expressing their concern for the climate crisis, the ECM participated in two EarthHour2EarthDay campaign climate actions, “Shop Local Sunday” and “Vegetarian-Vegan Monday.”

Conclusion:

The 2025 Executive Committee Meeting of the Asia and Pacific Alliance of YMCAs marked a significant moment for collaboration and reflection among the diverse national movements present. As the YMCAs navigate the challenges of a rapidly changing world, the insights shared during the theological reflections, committee, and task group reports emphasize the importance of unity, resilience, and proactive engagement within this diverse movement. The commitment to strengthening the YMCA movement within the Asia Pacific Region, advocating for more inclusivity also within its own structures, and addressing pressing social and environmental issues is more critical than ever.

ECM members prayed for the victims and their families of the recent earthquake and several National Movements pledged financial support to help support the emergency relief efforts.