West and Central Africa

Amid Turmoil, God Is Still at Work

By Sphiwe Nxumalo-Ngwenya, TWR Women of Hope Africa regional coordinator, and Victoire Fayé, Côte d'Ivoire national coordinator

Côte d'Ivoire, one of 23 countries in West and Central Africa, has been relatively stable since recovering from its own civil war in 2011. During the last several years, however, the overall subregion has encountered complex and protracted crises: brutal violence, political instability, climate change, weak governance, chronic poverty, a fraying social fabric and internally displaced communities. Daily survival is extremely challenging for the 63.5 million vulnerable women, children and men who live in the region.

Many displaced people from this subregion, particularly women and children, are being absorbed into Côte d'Ivoire’s population across the nation but more extensively in Abidjan, its economic center. We praise God that the TWR Women of Hope ministry is widespread within Abidjan and has recently extended to the nation’s capital, Yamoussoukro.

Recently Macy Domingo, the first national coordinator for Côte d'Ivoire, shared about the ministry’s humble beginnings.

“We had nothing – no place to meet and no office,” Domingo says. “We only had a passion to serve the Lord believing that he answers prayer. After vigilant and persistent prayer, God opened an opportunity – two prayer groups were established, and the ministry began.”

Since 2007 the ministry has grown to have several prayer groups and listener groups on different platforms with participants spanning the generations. Women meet to pray in person across the city of Abidjan as well as through social media platforms. On Facebook there are over a thousand members distributed across the country. Others are on WhatsApp, which covers a wider area of the nation.

TWR Women of Hope Côte d'Ivoire continues to reach women who have faced trauma, displacement, isolation and abuse.

Victoire Fayé, the current Côte d'Ivoire national coordinator, says, “It is our prayer that we can continue to serve women like Salamata, from whom we received this message: ‘When the coup happened in my country which borders Côte d'Ivoire, I had to flee. I have found you on Facebook and have been following your teachings, which have strengthened me to face yet another day. I have invited other relatives and friends who are also displaced to engage with you via Facebook or on WhatsApp. I also share with some who are not on Facebook through short text messages.’”

Each year, the Women of Hope team in Côte d'Ivoire produces weekly programs that are aired on local radio stations and distributed through Facebook and to listening groups. Fayé asks you to pray for this Côte d'Ivoire ministry as they “bring God to women who are in the middle of turmoil.”