Emil Hagamu

Emil Hagamu is the regional director of East Africa at Human Life International, and continues to serve as director of HLI Tanzania. Emil earned a Bachelor’s degree in Education from the University of Dar es Salaam and a postgraduate diploma in Management and Administration in Rhede, Germany. He also earned a degree from the Post Abortion Counseling and Healing program at Rhathvinden College, Ireland.

After working as a teacher in various secondary schools and colleges in Tanzania, he joined the Bishops’ Conference there and served as the National Coordinator for the Christian Professionals of Tanzania.  For the next eight years, he served as the Executive Secretary for the National Council of the Catholic Laity. It was during this time that he became acquainted with the pro-life movement and was inspired to found Pro-life Tanzania in 1994 to specifically promote the life issues in his country according to the teachings of the Catholic Church. Pro-Life Tanzania became affiliated to HLI in 1996. He was appointed HLI’s Tanzania Director in 1997.

With HLI’s ongoing support, Emil has been able to broaden the mission fields of his pro-life outreach throughout Tanzania and now beyond.  He and his team have traveled to every Catholic diocese of the whole country of Tanzania and have trained over 300,000 couples in NFP. Emil was also responsible for the phenomenally successful “Faithful Condom User” billboard campaign. To help people in his country and in the Anglophone Africa Region to understand and embrace the pro-life mission, he has written 6 books and booklets in Kiswahili and one in English. The pro-life books and booklets in Kiswahili are: “Dumisha Utamaduni wa Uhai”, which is used a textbook for training, “Nina Mimba; Je Nitoe”, “Vidhibiti Mimba: Ahadi Hewa, Kapu la Machozi”, “Laana ya Utoaji Mimba”, “Idadi ya Watu Kichocheo cha Maendeleo”, “Uchumba” and his latest booklet is in English, “The Contraceptive Mentality”.

Emil has established a multi-faceted network that provides Tanzania with a full range of pro-life education programs and resources. He has the close collaboration of the Church hierarchy there; and he is a sought-after speaker, educator, and consultant for all life-related issues. Plus, he has a regular program on Radio Maria and Radio Tumaini. He also has occasional programs with non-Catholic Media, such as Radio Upendo, a Lutheran run media, Wapo Radio, a Pentecostal Radio and BBC. Through this medium he reaches untold numbers, even in remote areas, Catholic and non-Catholic, including Moslems.

In a bid to consolidate the pro-life movement in his country, Emil has initiated the founding of the Parliamentarians Pro-Life Coalition, a group of 25 members who have vowed to fight for life in the Parliament and to make sure that any attempts to legalize abortion are rejected. He has also been instrumental in founding the Journalists for Life organization, a loose organization of committed pro-life members working in different media houses. The purpose of this organization is to promote the pro-life ministry within the media. Moreover, Emil has a network of pro-life priests and religious sisters throughout the country whom he has trained over the years.

As a Human Life International Regional Director for East Africa, Emil has made several missionary visits to all of the countries of his region: Ethiopia, Sudan, Uganda, Kenya, Rwanda, Burundi, Malawi, Mozambique, Swaziland, Lesotho, Botswana, Namibia, Zambia, Zimbabwe, Nigeria, Mauritius, the Comoros, South Africa, and his home country, Tanzania. During these visits he has helped to consolidate and start new pro-life organizations: Precious Is Life Apostolate in Ethiopia, HLI Uganda in Uganda, Pro-Life Malawi in Malawi, Pro-Life Swaziland in Swaziland, Pro-Life Lesotho in Lesotho, Pro-Life Movement in Zambia, and Life and Family Apostolate in Rwanda. Emil is working hard to help start pro-life organizations in Sudan and Namibia, and to strengthen the organization in South Africa. He says his greatest challenge is to ensure the Gospel of Life is proclaimed in the countries of Sudan and South Sudan.