Project Goal: 3,500 Mobile Schools
Content: Basic discipleship, Bible stories/music/drama, basic health
Population: 130,000,000
Literacy Rate: 60%
Religion: Christian 45%, Muslim: 45%, Traditional/tribal 10%.
Project Summary:We are in the process of wrapping up Phase I of our “West Africa Mobile School Project”. In Phase I, 1,500 “Mobile Schools” are being deployed with stories, songs, dramas and village proverbs of Biblical and community development content. Phase 2 is an initiative to build indigenous church capacity for evangelizing, discipling and church planting among the Nigerian peoples in the predominant Muslim north, using an oral learning methodology. The oral learning content will continue to be delivered over a network of MP3 players (“mobile schoolsâ€) in small listening groups for interactive discussion. It is in the context of these small group discussions that life-changing decisions are often made.The program initially launched in Niger and Kebbi States (Northwest Nigeria) through the Kambari Language Project (KLP), an existing initiative of The Nigeria Group. Other indigenous church partners assisting with the project include Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN), Evangelical Church of West Africa (ECWA) and United Missionary Church of Africa (UMCA).
Country Background
At least one of every four Africans is Nigerian. This most populous country ofAfrica is home to more than 400 distinct people groups, many of which are rural,poor and have low literacy skills. These tribal identities combine with extremecorruption, wealth hording by a few and multi-national corporations that exploitthe oil fields to produce a climate of despair. On the other hand, the recentprogress in democratic processes has led to two presidential elections followingyears of military rule. The country is extremely religious – very much like theAthens that Paul visited. (Acts 17:22) But the religion (even “Christian”) can be voidof the relationship and power God intended for Kingdom living.The influence of Nigeria is being felt throughout Africa and the world. With 10%of the world?s sweet crude oil off their shores, a strong banking system, and alarge Diaspora in other countries this country stands to influence all its neighbors.Nigeria is even emerging as the preeminent leader in film and video production.In light of all this Nigeria solidly functions as an oral society. Even the highlyliterate in government and education still prefer their information to come in oralforms. Therefore oral strategies will go a long way.