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+39 0669887260 | info@wucwo.org | Contact us
MISSION STATEMENT
WUCWO's aim is to promote the presence, participation and co-responsibility of Catholic women in society and the Church, in order to enable them to fulfil their mission of evangelisation and to work for human development.
North America
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Canada |
The Catholic Women's League of Canada |
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Ukrainian Catholic Women's League of Canada |
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Sisters of Providence |
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United States of America |
Knights of Peter Claver Ladies Auxiliary |
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https://kofpc.org |
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National Council of Catholic Women |
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Latin America and the Caribbean
Europe
| Country | Organisation | Web Page | |
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Austria |
Katholische Frauenbewegung Österreichs K.F.B.O. |
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Czech Republic |
Union Katolischer Frauen (UKZ) |
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France |
Action Catholique des Femmes (ACF) |
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Femina Europa |
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Germany |
Katolische Frauengemeinschaft Deutschlands (KFD) |
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Katolischer Deutscher Frauenbund (KDFB) |
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Verein Katolischer Deutscher Lehrerinnen (VKDL) |
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Greece |
Association of Greek Catholic Women |
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Hungary |
KALÁSZ - Association of Catholic Women and Girls |
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Italy |
Associazione Donne in Vaticano |
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www.donneinvaticano.org |
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Azione Cattolica Italiana |
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ACLI - Associazioni Cristiane Lavoratori Italiani |
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www.acli.it | |
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Casa de Procura del Instituto de Hermanas de la Sagrada Familia de Urgell |
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Centro Italiano Femminile |
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Convegni di Cultura Beata Maria Cristina di Savoia |
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Movimento Nazionale Donne UCID (Unione Cristiana Imprenditori Dirigenti) |
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Malta |
Catholic Action, Women's Branch |
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| Netherlands |
Netwerk Katholieke Vrouwen (NKV) |
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Poland |
Catholic Women Association of Poland (PZKK) |
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Slovak Republic |
Slovak Catholic Union |
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Spain |
Acción Católica General de Adultos de España |
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Adoración Nocturna Femenina de España |
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Asociación Católica de Propagandistas |
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www.acdp.es | |
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Acción Social Empresarial (ASE) |
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www.somosase.es | |
| Manos Unidas |
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| Switzerland |
Schweizerischer Katolischer Frauenbunf (SKF) |
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Unione Femminile Cattolica Ticinese |
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United Kingdom |
Catholic Women's League of England and Wales |
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Catholic Women Organisation Aberdeen |
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Federation of Polish Catholic Women's Organizations Abroad |
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National Board of Catholic Women |
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Pencils for all |
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The Association of Catholic Women |
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Union of Catholic Mothers |
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| International Organisations |
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Web Page |
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Association Mondiale des Anciennes du Sacré-Cœur (AMASC) |
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Société des Filles du Cœur de Marie (SFCM) |
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Asia-Pacific
| Country | Organisation | Web Page | |
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Australia |
Catholic Women's League Australia |
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Fiji Islands |
Catholic Women's League Fiji |
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India |
Council of Catholic Women of India |
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Indonesia |
Wanita Katolik Republik Indonesia |
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Japan |
The National Catholic Women's League of Japan |
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Lebanon |
The Pastoral Woman’s Committee |
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New Zealand |
Catholic Women's League of New Zealand |
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Philippines |
Catholic Women's League Philippines |
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South Korea |
Catholic Women's Organizations of Korea |
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Tonga |
Catholic Women's League of Tonga |
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Africa
| Country | Organisation | Web Page | |
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Burundi |
Association des Femmes Catholiques du Burundi |
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Cameroon |
Association Ekoan Maria |
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Association des Dames Apostoliques du Cameroun (ADAC) |
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Catholic Women's Association (CWA) |
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Les Mamans du Monastère |
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Ligue des Femmes Catholiques |
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D. R. Congo |
Branche Féminine Bondeko |
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Collectif Alpha Ujuvi
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| Côte d'Ivoire |
Association des Femmes de l'Église Catholique de Côte d'Ivoire |
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Eswatini |
Council of Catholic Women (CCW) |
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Gabon |
Association des Femmes Catholiques du Gabon |
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Ghana |
National Catholic Women's Association (NCWA) |
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National Council of Catholic Women of Ghana (NCCW) |
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Guinea |
Association des Femmes Catholiques de l'Archidiocèse de Conakry (ADFCAC) |
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Kenya |
The Kenya National Council of Catholic Women (NCCW) |
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Liberia |
National Council of Catholic Women of Liberia (NCCWO) |
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Madagascar |
Union Nationales des Organisations Féminines Catholiques à Madagascar |
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Malawi |
Catholic Women's Association (CWA) |
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Mali |
Association des Femmes Catholiques du Mali |
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Namibia |
Namibian Catholic Women's Movement |
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Nigeria |
Ladies of St. Mulumba |
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Catholic Women Organisation Nigeria (CWON) |
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National Confraternity of Catholic Christian Mothers |
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The Ladies Auxiliary of Knights of St. John International (LSJI) |
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Zumunta Mata Katolika, Nigeria (ZMKN) |
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Senegal |
Association Entraide des Femmes Catholiques du Sénégal (AEFCS) |
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Coordination des Unions Diocésaines des Associations Féminines Catholiques du Sénégal (CUDAFCS) |
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Mouvement des Femmes Catholiques du Sénégal |
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South Africa |
Catholic Women's League (CWLSA) |
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St. Anne Sodality |
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Tanzania |
Wanawake Wakatoliki Tanzania (WAWATA) |
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Togo |
Féderation des Organisations Féminines Catholiques de Togo (FOFCATO) |
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Uganda |
Uganda Catholic Women's Organisation |
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Zambia |
National Council of Catholic Women (NCCW) |
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Member Organisations
Organisation Chart
Centenary Declaration
The World Union of Catholic Women's Organisations
Centenary General Assembly
Jerusalem, 2010
The members of the World Union of Catholic Women‟s Organisations (WUCWO), representing sixty nations from around the globe, meeting at the Centenary General Assembly in Jerusalem, and on pilgrimage in the environs of the Holy Land in October 2010 state that:
● We acknowledge with gratitude the 100 years of vision, endeavour and commitment that leaders and members of what began in 1910, as the International Union of Catholic Women‟s Leagues, now known as the World Union of Catholic Women‟s Organisations have given to society and the Church throughout the century.
● We acknowledge that because of such vision and endeavour that Catholic women, working in accord with the Church and its teachings, were able to identify the many societal inadequacies and injustices impacting on the lives of women and families and worked assiduously to overcome them. WUCWO women do the same today.
● While acknowledging the many areas of service that Catholic women have already undertaken, we reaffirm the aim of WUCWO which is, “to promote the presence, participation and co-responsibility of Catholic women in society and the Church, in order to enable them to fulfil their mission of evangelisation and to work for human development” in unity, particularly for increasing educational opportunities, poverty reduction and the advancement of human rights beginning with the fundamental right to life.
● WUCWO women reiterate that the dignity, value and “genius” of women should be universally recognised, and that the importance of intergenerational relationships and the involvement of youth, and the cultural and theological contributions of women be supported and recognised for the attainment of a more humane, just and compatible society.
● Gathered together in Jerusalem, city of peace “a microcosm of our globalised world…this city,…a place that teaches the universality and respect for others, dialogue and mutual understanding; a place where prejudice, ignorance and fear that fuels them, are overcome by honesty, integrity and the pursuit of peace” [Pope Benedict XVI, Jerusalem 2009], with this perspective, in solidarity we commit ourselves to the study and witness of the Word of God and the Social Teachings of the Church, to ecumenical and inter-religious dialogue and to peacemaking.
● At the beginning of the 2nd century of such commitment, WUCWO women pray through their Patroness Mary, Queen of Peace, that they too will, ‘Receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you, and then you will be my witnesses……………indeed to the ends of the earth’ [Acts 1:8.] just as the Lord said the Father „had promised‟ the apostles in Jerusalem. [Acts: 1:5]
WUCWO Presidents
2023-Present Mónica Santamarina (Mexico)
2018-2023 María Lía Zervino, Servidora (Argentina)
2010-2018 Maria Giovanna Ruggieri (Italy)
2006-2010 Karen M. Hurley (U.S.A.)
1996-2006 Maria Eugenia Díaz de Pfennich (Mexico)
1987-1996 Marie-Thérèse van Heteren-Hogenhuis (Netherlands)
1983-1987 Eleanor E. Aitken (Canada)
1974-1983 Elizabeth Lovatt-Dolan (Ireland)
1961-1974 María del Pilar Bellosillo (Spain)
1952-1961 Marie du Rostu (France)
1922-1952 Mrs. Steenberghe - Engeringh (Netherlands)
1913-1922 Countess Vodzicka (Poland) First International President
1913 Margaret Fletcher (England) Elected to prepare the following Council
1912 Countess Zicky - Metternich (Austria) Elected to prepare the following Council
1911 Marchioness de Unza del Valle (Spain) Elected to prepare the following Council
1910 Viscountess de Vélard (France) Founder and leader
History
WUCWO / UMOFC
1910-2010
Mission
WUCWO's aim is to promote the presence, participation and co-responsibility of Catholic women in society and the Church, in order to enable them to fulfil their mission of evangelisation and to work for human development.
General Information
The World Union of Catholic Women’s Organisations (WUCWO) was founded in 1910 and now represents nearly 100 Catholic women’s organisations worldwide, active in around 50 countries including all continents and some island states, counting on around eight (8) million Catholic women of every walk of life. WUCWO’s aim is to promote the presence, participation and co-responsibility of Catholic women in society and the Church, in order to enable them to fulfil their mission of evangelisation and to work for human development, particularly in increasing educational opportunities, poverty reduction and the advancement of human rights beginning with the fundamental right to life.
In 2006, WUCWO was erected by the Holy See as a Public International Association of the Faithful. This canonical status honours the efforts of Catholic women active in our Union at the parish, diocesan, national and international levels.
WUCWO unites Catholic women in the world to give them a voice on the international platform. Since their inception, WUCWO has held Consultative status with the United Nations Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC), the Human Rights Council (Geneva), the FAO (Rome), participatory status at the Council of Europe (Strasbourg), and is an official partner of UNESCO (Paris).
WUCWO examines the critical issues that have an impact on the lives of women internationally and promotes the dignity of every human being.
WUCWO coordinates the activities of Catholic women's organisations worldwide, serving as a necessary link between them and the network of international organizations and faith communities.
Through them, WUCWO helps train those who are without resources or opportunities, provides victims of violence and poverty a means of subsistence for them and their children and helps enable them to fulfill their mission of evangelisation and to work for human development.
WUCWO’s principal areas of activity are:
• Promote the formation of women in order for them to face contemporary challenges
• Foster awareness and respect of cultural diversity
• Promote and coordinate the activities of Member Organisations at the international level and represent them in international bodies
• Network with other international organisations and faith communities for the respect of human rights, especially those of women
• Encourage ecumenical and interreligious dialogue.
Support WUCWO's mission
Magazine "Women's Voice"
Voices from our Member Organisations which are testimony to the commitment of WUCWO´s members on the theme: "Spes non confundit."
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Pilar Bellosillo
WUCWO's Institutional Video
WUCWO Newsletter
Here, you can keep up to date with the activities of WUCWO by reading the most recent issue of our periodic newsletter.
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Women Church World, the female monthly magazine of L'Osservatore Romano
