

Capital City: Luanda
Year of Independence: 1975
Area: 1,246,700 sq km
Arable Land: 2.65%
Population: 12,531,357
Median Age: 18 years
Population Growth Rate: 2.136%
Infant Mortality: 182.31 deaths/1,000 live births
Life Expectancy at Birth: 37.92 years
Literacy Rate: 67.4%
Ethnic Groups: Ovimbundu 37%, Kimbundu 25%, Bakongo 13%, mestico (mixed European and native African) 2%, European 1%, other 22%
Religions: indigenous beliefs 47%, Roman Catholic 38%, Protestant 15%
Languages: Portuguese (official), Bantu and other African languages
Training Center of Andulo
Trainer: Elias Laurentino
55 churches planted, and 2,650 people giving their lives to Jesus
Training Center of Kunje
Trainer: Franco Saculembe
25 churches planted, and 1,000 people giving their lives to Jesus
Training Center of Kuhinga
Trainer: Fernando Chipati
37 churches planted, and 1,200 people giving their lives to Jesus
Training Center of Nharea
Trainer: Pinto Domingos
37 churches planted, and 2,500 people giving their lives to Jesus
Training Center of Camacupa
Trainer: Domingos Morais
64 churches planted, and 2,750 people giving their lives to Jesus
Training Center of Kuemba
Trainer: Americo Mariano
30 churches planted, and 1,270 people giving their lives to Jesus

Jeremias was born on 16 March 1972 in Sanza Pombo, Uige Province, in northern Angola. He married his wife, Aida, in December 2005. They live in Kuito-Bié, a city in central Angola that suffered tremendous damage during the civil war that lasted 30 years. Today, the country is free.
Due to Angola's civil war, Jeremias fled to South Africa as a refugee, and lived there for several years. In 2001, he joined the Into Africa Project of OMS Africa. After receiving training in theology and church planting, Jeremias and an associate named Lourenço returned to Angola as a team to start a VCP program in the country under the supervision of Ray Airosa.
In May 2004, they started the first VCP training center with one trainer and 15 pastor trainees. Two months later, the VCP program grew to three training centers with 45 trainees. Jeremias recounts, "It was hard for us because this was the first time we had put this new strategy of church planting into practice. In the beginning, people could not understand how we could start church planting in many different areas at once. It was like madness, and even we were not sure what we were doing."
By the end of 2004, almost 50 new churches had been planted, and more than 2,500 people had given their lives to Jesus. Jeremias states, "This was a miracle to us, and we could not believe it! It was amazing to us, since our Angolan partner denomination with a 100-year history of missionary work had never planted more than one church in a single year."
In January 2005, the VCP team started three more training centers with 40 pastor trainees, bringing the total to six training centers and 84 trainees. At the end of 2005, 75 new churches had been established and more than 4,000 people had given their lives to Jesus during the course of the year.
As of the end of 2007, God had blessed the Into Africa Project in Angola with six trainers in six centers (see photos at left), and 290 pastor trainees.

Angola VCP Leadership Team