We believe that for the first time in the history of Youth for Christ worldwide, a Pioneering Conference was held, it took place in Magaaliesburg, South Africa. It was attended by 57 delegates from across Africa. This conference was borne out of the desire to inject new life into Youth for Christ Africa’s G21 Focus. Ten nations were identified by the Africa leadership team to be pioneered within the next 5 years strategically using the neighboring countries to pioneer each of the targeted nations.
Participants were blessed to have Cheryl Watkins, David Od-huno, Thomas Resane, Jim and Becky Brown, Gary and Cheryl Wyatt, Geordan Rendle and David Kadalie as the main speakers. Topics covered were : Who, Why, What of Pioneering?, Spiritual Warfare, Spiritual Mapping, An African pioneering in Africa, Cross Cultural Issues in Pioneering, Youth for Christ Values and Framework in Pioneering, A foreigner in a Pioneering situation and Dependency Syndrome. The Keynote address was delivered by Hilary Lewis-Nicol, Youth for Christ’s Africa Area Director. Participants were amazed at the excellent presentations and quality of training they received.
It was amazing having all the participants sit around tables to have a 30-minute discussions on each topic that was treated by each speaker. There were good discussions and time to personally reflect on the topics and make personal application as well. This was the very first time to try this format, and it went very well. The delegates loved it.
Great meal times together afforded delegates an opportunity to bond more with their colleagues, sharing ministry and life experiences.
The 10 pioneer nations in Africa targeted for the next five years are:
- Cameroon– To be pioneered by Nigeria
- Equatorial Guinea– By Guinea
- Tanzania/Zanzibar – By Tanzania
- Democratic Republic of Congo & Somalia- By Kenya
- Southern Sudan– By Uganda
- Central African Republic – By Benin
- Comoros/Mayotte – By Madagascar
- Reunion – Reunion
- Seychelles – Islands Region
- Togo– Ghana