A new landmark for student missions in Southern Africa

Students from across Southern Africa mark a new date on their calendars as the International Fellowship of Evangelical Students (IFES) is set to launch its Masiye Conference, a six-day students’ missions conference, taking place in the picturesque Magaliesburg of South Africa, from October 3-8, 2017.
Deriving its name from the Zulu-language, the word “masiye” means “let’s go” a powerful call-to-action in-line with the IFES Living Stones Vision Till 2020.
“We want to see 1 million students actively involved in IFES movements by 2020! To do this we need to nurture and train students to release their creative energy and initiative in engaging their friends and universities for Christ” notes the IFES website.

The conference will follow the likes of the Intervarsity USA and Intervarsity Canada Urbana Conference held every three years in Miami, Florida and the IFES Europe Presence Conference which took place in Germany earlier this year.
Hosted by the English- and Portuguese-speaking Africa (EPSA) regional office, in association with the Students’ Christian Organisation (SCO) as host movement in South Africa, the Masiye Conference is the first collective event to emerge across the 10 national movements represented in Southern Africa under the EPSA office and will seat up to 500 delegates.
“We are, as a region, encouraged to see more mission initiatives emerging in EPSA” says Gideon Para-Mallam, IFES Regional Secretary for EPSA.
“I believe this conference will truly be spectacular. It’s not every day we as students get to gather behind such a powerful cause, especially with students from other parts of the continent” says Noluthando Nkebetwana, an SCO student representative from the University of the Western Cape (UWC).
The full-conference package is priced at ZAR 850 for students and ZAR 950 for adults and alumni, inclusive of catering and accommodation. Day and weekend packages are also available.
To register for the Masiye Conference visit www.masiyetotheworld.com or follow @MasiyeAfrika on Twitter for conference updates. You can also join the movement by liking the conference page on Facebook at facebook.com/masiyeconference or on Instagram at instagram.com/masiyeconference.

LIST OF MASIYE

The IFES English- and Portuguese-speaking Africa (EPSA) regional movement operates across 28 African nations, each pioneered through an affiliate national movement or through missional activities:

1. Angola: GBECA Angola
2. Botswana: ICMB Botswana
3. Cape Verde Islands (pioneering)
4. Ethiopia: Evangelical Students’ and Graduates’ Union of Ethiopia (EvaSUE)
5. Equatorial Guinea
6. Eritrea
7. Gambia: FES-Gambia
8. Ghana: GHAFES Ghana
9. Guinea-Bissau: GBU Guinea-Bissau
10. Kenya: FOCUS Kenya
11. Lesotho: SULTM Lesotho
12. Liberia: Liberia Fellowship of Evangelical Students (LIFES)
13. Malawi: Student Christian Organization of Malawi
14. Mozambique: Aliança Bíblica Estudantil de Moçambique (ABEMO) Mozambique
15. Namibia: CSF Namibia
16. Nigeria: NIFES Nigeria
17. Sao Tome and Principe (to be pioneered)
18. Sierra Leone: SLEFES Sierra Leone
19. Somalia (to be pioneered)
20. Somaliland (to be pioneered)
21. South Africa: Students’ Christian Organisation (SCO) South Africa
22. Sudan: FOCUS Sudan
23. South Sudan: FOCUS Sudan
24. Swaziland: INCOSCM Swaziland
25. Tanzania: TAFES Tanzania
26. Uganda: FOCUS Uganda
27. Zambia: ZAFES Zambia
28. Zimbabwe: FOCUS Zimbabwe

More About the IFES

The International Fellowship of Evangelical Students (IFES) is a global movement of students, staff and supporters with one vision: to establish a vibrant Christian witness in universities around the world. It was founded in 1947 when leaders from ten Christian student movements met at Harvard University in the United States. Today, half a million students in more than 160 countries have become part of the IFES, through 148 affiliate movements operating in 11 different IFES regions.

This vast number however, does not change the IFES mandate; to effectively reach every student on every campus, in every country and to equip future leaders who can change the world for Christ.

For more information about the IFES, visit www.ifesworld.org or follow @ifesworld on Twitter for updates.