The Evangelical Presbyterian Church of Ivory Coast (''Église Évangélique Presbytérienne de Côte d'Ivoire '' in

French French (french: français(e), link=no) may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to France ** French language, which originated in France, and its various dialects and accents ** French people, a nation and ethnic group identified with Franc ...

) is a

confessional A confessional is a box, cabinet, booth, or stall in which the priest in some Christian churches sits to hear the confessions of penitents. It is the usual venue for the sacrament in the Roman Catholic Church and the Lutheran Churches, but sim ...

Presbyterian Presbyterianism is a part of the Reformed tradition within Protestantism that broke from the Roman Catholic Church in Scotland by John Knox, who was a priest at St. Giles Cathedral (Church of Scotland). Presbyterian churches derive their nam ...

denomination in

Ivory Coast Ivory Coast, also known as Côte d'Ivoire, officially the Republic of Côte d'Ivoire, is a country on the southern coast of West Africa. Its capital is Yamoussoukro, in the centre of the country, while its largest city and economic centre is ...

. Originally, members of the church were Korean diplomats, businessmen, and others residing in Ivory Coast in the early 1980s. In 1986, pastor In-chul Kim founded the first Korean church in Abidjan. He was succeeded by pastor Sang Ho Kwak following his departure in 1990. On January 6, 1994 an assembly was held in the Korean Presbyterian Community to define the constitution and bylaws. In 1996 Rev. Peak was set by the Korean Presbyterian Church in America to the Abidjan-based church. Later the church begun to expand to all regions of the country through the tremendous work of indigenous ministers like Yao Kassi Paul at Abobo, KOFFI at Bouaké, METCHE Samuel at Dabou, KOUAKOU Naka at Cocody Riviera Palmeraie and HAÏBA at Bingerville. The church has 26 congregations and 133 house fellowships in the country. Churches are in

Abidjan Abidjan ( , ; N'Ko script, N’ko: ߊߓߌߖߊ߲߬) is the economic capital of the Ivory Coast. As of the Demographics of Ivory Coast, 2021 census, Abidjan's population was 6.3 million, which is 21.5 percent of overall population of the country, ...

, Anyama, Abobo,

Abengourou Abengourou is a city in eastern Côte d'Ivoire. It is the seat of both Comoé District and Indénié-Djuablin Region. It is also a commune and the seat of and a sub-prefecture of Abengourou Department. Abengourou is primarily populated by th ...

Aboisso Aboisso is a town in south-eastern Ivory Coast lying on the Soumié River. It is a sub-prefecture of the Aboisso Department for which it is also the seat of government. Aboisso is also a commune as well as the seat of government for the Sud-Co ...

Bingerville Bingerville is a town in south-eastern Ivory Coast. It is a suburb of Abidjan and is one of four sub-prefectures of Abidjan Autonomous District. Bingerville is also a commune. The town is located about 10 kilometres east of Abidjan and lies on th ...

Dabou Dabou is a port town in southern Ivory Coast. It is the seat of both the Lagunes District and the Grands-Ponts Region. It is also the seat of and a sub-prefecture of the Dabou Department. Dabou is also a commune. The town is served by Dabou Air ...

Duékoué Duékoué () is a city in western Ivory Coast. It is a sub-prefecture of and the seat of Duékoué Department. It is also the seat of Guémon Region in Montagnes District and a commune. In the 2021 census, the population of the sub-prefecture ...

, Divo,

Danané Danané is a city in the far west of Ivory Coast. It is a sub-prefecture of and the seat of Danané Department in Tonkpi Region, Montagnes District. Danané is also a commune. The city is 25 kilometres east of the border with Liberia, 30 kil ...

, Issia,

N'Douci N'Douci (also spelled Ndouci) is a town in southern Ivory Coast. It is a sub-prefecture of Tiassalé Department in Agnéby-Tiassa Region, Lagunes District. N'Douci was a commune A commune is an alternative term for an intentional community. Comm ...

Sassandra Sassandra is a town in southern Ivory Coast. It is a sub-prefecture of and the seat of Sassandra Department. It is also a commune and the seat of Gbôklé Region in Bas-Sassandra District. Sassandra lies on the Gulf of Guinea at the mouth of th ...

, San Pedro, Yopougon and Yaobou. The church is headed by Rev. Peter Peak since 1994. The churches are banded into districts, namely the South District, the West Central District, the West District, East District and Southwest District. In 2000, by the initiative of Pastor KOUAKOU Naka, YAO Kassi Paul and ADAHOU Solomon, the Evangelical Presbyterian Theological Institute in Ivory Coast was founded by missionaries from

South Korea South Korea, officially the Republic of Korea (ROK), is a country in East Asia, constituting the southern part of the Korea, Korean Peninsula and sharing a Korean Demilitarized Zone, land border with North Korea. Its western border is formed ...

. After three years of training 11

pastor A pastor (abbreviated as "Pr" or "Ptr" , or "Ps" ) is the leader of a Christian congregation who also gives advice and counsel to people from the community or congregation. In Lutheranism, Catholicism, Eastern Orthodoxy, Oriental Orthodoxy and ...

s received their diplomas to serve the 160 Evangelical Presbyterian Church in Ivory Coast. The headquarters of the church located in Abidjan, Cocody 2 Plateaux . The church wants to start evangelisation efforts in

Niger ) , official_languages = , languages_type = National languagesBurkina Faso Burkina Faso (, ; , ff, 𞤄𞤵𞤪𞤳𞤭𞤲𞤢 𞤊𞤢𞤧𞤮, italic=no) is a landlocked country in West Africa with an area of , bordered by Mali to the northwest, Niger to the northeast, Benin to the southeast, Togo and Ghana to the ...

and the neighbouring countries. The church is a member of the World Reformed Fellowship.

References

External links

Official website
{{World Reformed Fellowship Members of the World Reformed Fellowship Presbyterian denominations in Africa Churches in Ivory Coast 1997 establishments in Ivory Coast