World Council of Churches (WCC) General Secretary the Rev Dr Samuel Kobia has given a message of encouragement to the 9th assembly of the Pacific Conference of Churches ahead of its gathering.

Churches in the Pacific become "signs of hope" as they "bear witness to the Gospel and work together to address the issues that most concern the peoples of the region", Dr Kobia said.

The gathering will take place 2-8 September at the Kanana Fou Theological Seminary, in Pago Pago, American Samoa.

Over 200 delegates from 25 churches and seven national councils of churches are expected to attend the proceedings under the theme "Atua [God], empower us to be liberating communities".

In addition, the WCC has reported that teams of young delegates will also attend a youth pre-assembly taking place at the same venue 31 August-1 September.

The witness of the Pacific churches takes place amid "new challenges to political stability, environmental well-being and economic and cultural autonomy", Kobia underlined in his message.

He expressed hope that the assembly would be an "opportunity to focus the attention of the churches and councils on a common vision of unity and witness, and to coordinate strategies to address the critical issues within the region".