An evangelical charity is to donate over 10,000 books to plug the gap in theological resources worldwide. 

The launch of Langham Partnership's 'Books for Bible Colleges' initiative coincides with World Book Day today. 

The initiative is being driven by a "critical shortage" of theological resources in the Majority World that the charity says is feeding into a "global leadership crisis" and hindering the development of degree programmes.

According to the charity, over 80 per cent of pastors in the Majority World lack any formal training, and many college and seminary libraries do not have sufficient resources to teach them. 

Further challenges lie in the "heavy reliance" on resources authored by Western Christians. 

The initiative will allow Bible colleges to choose from 7,200 books in the Langham catalogue to create their own core library and even gain accreditation. 

Participating colleges will receive a £300 grant and logistics and shipping will also be covered. 

Simon Foulds, Development Manager for Langham UK and Ireland, said: "Now more than ever, we need to equip Christian leaders with great potential who face poverty, pressure, and persecution every day.

"Every church deserves a well-trained leader, and Langham wants to ensure every aspiring church leader has access to a stocked library before they preach from the pulpit. The foundation of theologically sound study and training cannot be underrated.

"In the West our access to books is so widespread that we can take our education and libraries for granted. How many of us have Christian books on our shelves that we've bought but never read?"

Rev Rose Chemegemet, Academic Dean at the Kima International School of Theology (KIST), said: "The entire staff at KIST are very grateful for the books which Langham has provided for the Church in Africa. Thank you so much to everyone who donates to Langham for making such a great impact in the training ministry of the global church."