When a Maninka singer dies, it is like a library of history books has burned to the ground. The Maninka of Guinea are oral rather than literate. They do not learn or tell their stories in newspapers, books, or on websites. The treasures of their culture are kept by musicians and story tellers. As a result, reading is not a vital skill, and over 75% of the Maninka are non-literate.
How does one communicate the Truth of the Gospel with a non-reading culture? While literacy training can and does have a place, ministry in this context requires creativity and rethinking of traditional print methods. The Maninka Audio Media Outreach (MAMO) Project is a result of the SIM Guinea team's vision.
The dream? Maninka people having the opportunity to hear the Good News of Jesus in a way they can readily understand. The MAMO team plans to make cassettes of dramatic scripture readings, teaching on basic needs such as health information, and training material for Christian believers to grow in their faith.
This project is underway. The team has constructed a studio and recently produced a recording of the book of Genesis. In addition to selling the tapes for a small price, they plan to pursue opportunities to broadcast the recordings over radio. Maninka believers like DK, the Genesis narrator, are taking important roles in this effort so that eventually it will be completely Maninka-led.
