Pastor Kéo Kognon is the Acts 29 regional director for the Ivory Coast and French-speaking West Africa. He said that last year, many Western missionaries had to leave the region due to violence and unrest, making local churches led by local pastors essential in moving forward. Acts 29 is meeting this need by helping local pastors with training, support, and recruitment. 

Here, a Bible study is taking place in the location where the new Acts 29 Training Center will be built.

We’re excited to announce a new Acts 29 training center breaking ground soon in Abidjan, Côte d’Ivoire! Abidjan is the largest city on the Ivory Coast and is well-positioned for this resource. The center will train and equip church planters and pastors from across West Africa and is undoubtedly an answered prayer for leaders throughout the region. Many men will be able to travel to Abidjan for training in both theology and ministry. This creates a hub for the region to receive and equip church planters and then send them back to their context with confidence.

Pastor Jacques, a pastor in Niger who was recently assessed, speaks to the deep need for a center like this, “Why did it take Acts 29 so long to get active in French-speaking West Africa? We have so many pastors and church planters doing stuff in our region who are not qualified. We needed this assessment years ago!” Jacques’s native country of Niger is only 0.3 percent Christian. Pastors here need biblical and theological training as the gospel advances in West Africa. 

Scott Zeller, vice president of Acts 29 Global, said about the region, “Even in a country of profound evangelistic urgency, the pastors see the need for our robust assessment of those who will lead the churches to make those disciples.” This is why we long to see more and better churches planted worldwide. Join us in celebrating this training center in Abidjan (we’ll keep you updated on their groundbreaking!), and thank you for your partnership in this work of church planting!

Specific prayer points for Acts 29’s church planting work in West Africa:

• Pray for security concerns in West Africa and for locals to recognize the urgency of sharing the gospel with neighbors since many Western missionaries had to leave.
• Pray for the five church planters on the north of Ivory Coast. Pray for their protection and opportunities to share the gospel.
• Pray for pastor Kéo as he travels frequently and is preparing to move to Abidjan, which is seven hours from where he currently lives.