North Africa

REGION BACKGROUND

The North African region is very different from the rest of Africa. The area spans from Mauritania in the west to Tunisia in the east and has recently seen much turmoil. The Arab Spring was triggered in Tunisia, and Libya has been in a chaotic state since Muammar Gaddafi was deposed. In addition, protests have broken out in Algeria and the president was forced to step down. However, Morocco has been politically stable and is growing economically. The inhabitants of this region are mostly of Berber descent, but through Arabization and Islamization, their cultures have been drastically impacted. Arabic, French, and Berber are the most commonly spoken languages. Between 93-98% of the population of these nations is considered Muslim and most countries only have a few thousand believers. These followers of Christ worship underground in small networks of house churches. While the law of most countries in this region allows religious freedom, that freedom is abused and believers are often persecuted for attempting to convert Muslims. Only expats in the region are allowed to worship openly. At the same time, many people in the region have become disillusioned with Islam and have become agnostic. This has created a ripe seedbed for the gospel to flourish.

REGION WORK

God has opened doors for us to connect with believers in almost all of the North African countries, and Live Schools have been established in most of them. Our work here is an incredible privilege as not many organizations can connect with the underground church. Our strategy is a cautious one which involves much prayer and creative communication. There are at least 13 students who have completed the Live School training in this region, and recently, material was put in place so that another 60 believers can go through Live School. These believers are reaching many people with the gospel. It is a slow process, and, in most cases, conversion takes years. But there is fruit! Our goal is to get behind these believers, encourage them, train them, pray for them, and see them become even more effective with taking the gospel to their own people. We believe that a focused prayer strategy is needed. We will pray open the ancient doors (Psalm 24:7-10).

REGION STATS

Live Schools have been established in two nations, and the process has begun to start schools in two other countries. There are a total of 186 students who have been empowered to go through Live School.