African Churches To Meet Government Standards
Pastors’ Training one Component
The government of Rwanda is one of the first African countries to close churches who do not meet governmental standards1. While some standards focus on building codes, other standards require pastors to be certified with a degree and a “certificate in religious studies”. According to estimates from the Association of Evangelicals in Africa (AEA), 90% of African pastors have little to no theological training2. In Rwanda, 8,000 churches (70%) have been closed for not meeting the governmental standards. Other African countries are contemplating the same type of regulation which is intended to protect citizens from abuse.
NEGST / AIU is uniquely positioned to address this situation.
NEGST has the experienced scholars and teachers to oversee curriculum development needed by these pastors. AIU has the authority to award certificates (one year of study), diplomas (two years), baccalaureate degrees (four years), and also graduate degrees and diplomas. Additionally, in the University Charter granted by the Commission on University Education (Kenya) in 2011, AIU has the ability to grant academic credit for prior learning which can compress the amount of time required for the pastor to obtain a specific credential.
NEGST ran a pilot program in Rwanda for an initial cohort of students with classes taught by existing NEGST faculty. However, scaling up to meet the need will take additional faculty. Some of this need can be met by NEGST alumni in Rwanda, another part of the need can be met utilizing NEGST graduate students as teaching assistants. Both engaging NEGST alumni in Rwanda and the utilization of graduate students require funding. Please make a gift today to help provide training for these rural pastors.
Questions? Please contact us.
Rwandan Governance Board strategizing how to meet pastoral training needs.
[1] https://www.gov.rw/blog-detail/frequent-questions-on-inspection-and-closure-of-prayer-houses