This information was submitted by SA’s International Committee and shared at the Atlanta Convention in January 2013. It has been edited for ESSAY.

SA’s International Committee (IC) supports international loners and fosters the development of SA Groups, Intergroups, and Regions outside of North America. Our committee members are scattered around the globe. Following are some of our activities.

Overall International Membership. The number of SA members outside of North America has doubled in the last 18 months and now exceeds 25% of our total membership. Today there are SA meetings in 43 countries outside of North America. The majority of the new overseas members do not speak English. In Iran, where our 1,527 members speak Farsi, there are 99 groups and seven intergroups. Other members speak Polish, German, Hebrew, Swahili, French, or Spanish.

Europe and Middle East Region. Our first full-fledged International region, EMER, actively supports the seven national intergroups in Belgium, Ireland, Israel, the Netherlands, Poland, Spain, and the United Kingdom. This new region enables 137 groups to participate actively and fully in SA’s worldwide service structure.

Shanghai, China. In January, three SA loners met for the first time in Shanghai for a one-day SA roundup. They sent their regards to everyone at Atlanta.

Israel. Israel now offers 26 meetings per week for a membership nearing 200. The Israeli Intergroup sponsors 42 Hebrew-speaking phone meetings per week, with up to 70 members participating in a single meeting. An “SA House” has been leased in Jerusalem, which provides permanent space for meetings and workshops.

An active Public Information program has led to briefings for scores of counsellors and therapists in Israel.

Russia. SA members in Russia held their second national convention in Moscow on November 23-25, 2012, and are pleading for all Russian-speaking members around the world to come to their third convention in late 2013. Russian-speaking members in Belarus, Estonia, Lithuania, Israel, Russia, Ukraine and the United States are grateful for the experience, strength, and hope already given by IC members Laurens A. and Dimitri P.

Loners. Many of our international members are loners who stay in contact with the fellowship via Skype. These “VoIP” or Skype meetings operate worldwide, year-round. The languages used include Russian, Farsi, French, Spanish, Polish, German and English. Although call quality is not always good, these meetings are a boon for international loners and are, of course, free of charge. A meeting list is available at sa.org/docs/phnflyer.pdf.

French-Speaking Countries. The first ever French-Speaking Recovery Day was held in Belgium in October 2012. At that event, the group in Lille, France volunteered to organize a meeting to plan creation of an Intergroup for French-speaking groups. The proposed Francophone Intergroup could affiliate with French-speaking meetings in Quebec or with the new EMER. We hope to one day see a French-speaking region, which will include the Francophone parts of Africa and the Far East.

The Luxembourg group volunteered to organize and host the 2013 “Journée de Rétablissement” (Recovery Day). An IC member has been invited to give a Twelve Step Workshop Weekend in Luxembourg in July 2013, with simultaneous translation into French. Any French-speaking members who would like to help with this outreach, please contact us via SAICO.

Kenya. The latest country to start an SA meeting is Kenya. Several IC members, including Dave T., Nicholas S., and Cameron B., have visited the new group in Nairobi, providing literature, workshops, and experience, strength and hope. (See following article.)

German-Speaking Countries. Our German-Speaking Region, supporting 48 meetings in Germany, Austria, Switzerland, and Luxembourg, is evolving its service structure to more closely follow the SA service structure. German-language telephone meetings occur daily. A German SA newsletter is being circulated. Both male and female German-speaking sponsors are urgently needed. Please contact us via SAICO if you can help.

Spain: After many years of little growth or development, the fellowship in Spain has sprung to life. The fledgling Spanish Intergroup asked the IC to fund a Twelve Step workshop in Barcelona in late 2012. We were blessed to have 20 members attending. We have held other conventions in Spain, but this was the first time we were able to invite members from outside to share with us, thanks to the financial support of the IC and guidance from EMER. The workshop was given in English with live translation into Spanish, along with a translation of the 24-page workbook. On the last day, members from the UK, Romania, and Belgium aided us in electing a complete board of members for the Spanish Intergroup, along with coordinators for loners, translation, public information, email and telephone. We are grateful to all who participated and made this opportunity possible.

The Spanish IG was officially formed in December 2012 and subsequently joined EMER. We are grateful to be of service to those who still suffer in the Spanish-speaking community. We would like to translate articles from the ESSAY newsletter as a service to our community, as we find ESSAY’s messages powerful and uplifting.

We are grateful to the entire fellowship for your support in our international endeavors, and for giving us the opportunity to serve.