West Africa church leaders affirm need to scale up Non-Formal Theological Education

Following the Southern Africa consultative meetings held in Johannesburg during the last week of August, the Association of Evangelicals in Africa (AEA) and Church Transformation Network (CTN), held joint meetings with select West Africa church leaders from Nigeria, Liberia and Sierra Leone in Abuja, Nigeria. The meeting was hosted by the Nigeria Evangelical Fellowship. Present in the meetings, in addition to the three alliances, was the National Director Scripture union – Sierra Leone, Plateau State Chairman – Pentecostal Fellowship of Nigeria, Representatives from Evangelical Church Winning All (ECWA), Anglican Church of Nigeria and Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN) and the AEA Regional President. The objective of the meeting was to bridge gaps on non-formal theological training, with the aim of training one million pastors in the next ten years with biblical pastoral competencies.

In their presentations, Pastor Dr. Jerry Rueb, the CTN Board chair and Dr. Habtamu Umer, the CTN President, discussed the need for formal and non-formal training in pastoral leadership, highlighting that 80-90% of pastors globally lack formal training. The two emphasized the importance of addressing this gap through systematic, non-formal training at the grassroots level. They stressed the great urgency of training new leaders and encouraging current pastors, while highlighting the role of pastors in equipping saints for ministry, building the church to spiritual maturity, defending the flock from false teaching, and speaking the truth in love.

In his remarks, Rev. Dr. Master Oboletswe Matlhaope, AEA Secretary General, paid tribute to the legacy of AEA’s first leaders, including Dr. Byang Kato and Dr. Tokunboh Adeyemo, who hailed from West Africa, and whose vision and sacrifices continue to inspire the evangelical movement across Africa.

Quoting from John 17:21, Dr. Matlhaope reminded delegates of Christ’s prayer for unity:

“Our shared mission to spread the gospel, as told in the Great Commission, brings us together. The Spirit of Christ in us is enmity with the world, and therefore our unity as the body of Christ is non-negotiable. This unity, especially between groups like Evangelicals and Pentecostals, shows the world the power of our shared faith.”

Delegates affirmed this call, noting that unity is essential for the Church in Nigeria and across West Africa to speak with one voice on pressing issues, including the persecution of believers, corruption, and rising religious extremism.

Throughout the consultation, leaders participated in sessions designed to:

  • Assess national readiness and capacity for pastor training.
  • Reflect on emerging barriers to theological formation including witchcraft, corruption, and religious extremism
  • Reflect on the biblical mandate of equipping pastors
  • Explore CTN’s contextualized curriculum and small-group discipleship methodology.
  • Commitment to advancing sustainable national-level training

The importance of collaboration across denominations was emphasized as paramount to address gaps in training and discipleship in the continent as well as the need for evaluating the quality of theological education in Africa through AEA’s Association for Christian Theological Education in Africa (ACTEA), an accredited body that assesses programs and provides professional feedback to ensure compliance with standards.

The delegates thereafter went through a strategic plan workshop to review the concluded AEA strategic plan and co-develop the new strategic plan aligning with the current and emerging realities.