In the heart of Kajo Keji, South Sudan, the North East Africa Theological Seminary (NEATS) is shaping the next generation of church planters and pastors. What makes NEATS unique is that it’s not just a school, it’s a movement of disciple-making leaders being raised up to plant and shepherd churches across South Sudan, Sudan, and beyond.

How Students Arrive at NEATS

The journey often begins far from the NEATS campus. Local churches across South Sudan host Discipleship Training Institute (DTI) classes, where believers are grounded in the basics of faith and leadership. From there, local congregations prayerfully select students they believe God has called into deeper ministry training. These chosen men and women are then sent to NEATS for advanced biblical and theological education.

A Training Model That Multiplies

At NEATS, education goes beyond lectures and textbooks. The training process is designed to embody 2 Timothy 2:2: “Entrust to faithful men who will be able to teach others also.”

• Veteran Faculty: NEATS teachers are not just professors—they are pastors, church planters, and disciple-makers who teach out of their lived ministry experience.
• Practicum-Based Curriculum: Students spend one month on campus immersed in biblical studies and theology, then return home for two months to apply what they’ve learned in their local churches. This cycle happens four times per year.
• Proof in Practice: To graduate, every student must participate in planting at least one church. Classroom knowledge must lead to real-world ministry impact.

What Students Learn

Over two years, students complete a rigorous program that covers the full sweep of Scripture and the core doctrines of the Christian faith. Courses range from Genesis and Exodus to Revelation, from Hermeneutics and Biblical Counseling to Missional Strategy and Indigenous Church Planting .

This integrated curriculum combines:

• Biblical theology and literacy – building a strong foundation in God’s Word.
• Leadership development – equipping students to shepherd churches.
• Missional strategy – training leaders to reach the unreached and multiply disciples.
• Cultural engagement – including courses on Islam and African Traditional Religion to prepare graduates for ministry in diverse contexts.

Graduation With a Mission

Graduating from NEATS is not the end of the story, it’s the beginning. Each graduate is commissioned to plant a church and strengthen the Flagship Church Vision of Empower One. NEATS alumni are the backbone of church multiplication, serving as pastors, church planters, and leaders of new Extension Centers that expand training opportunities into more remote areas.

This process ensures that the gospel does not stop with them. As they go out, NEATS graduates raise up new disciples who will one day be trained and sent, continuing the cycle of multiplication.

Holding Fast to the Word of Life

At its core, NEATS is about preparing leaders who will hold fast to the Word of God in every season of life and ministry. Philippians 2:16 says: “…holding fast to the word of life, so that in the day of Christ I may be proud that I did not run in vain or labor in vain.”

NEATS is more than a seminary; it is a sending hub for gospel-centered leaders who are committed to making disciples, planting churches, and advancing the Kingdom of God in places where hope is needed most.