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Region · Sub-Saharan Africa
Central Africa
Churches are full and growing, often mixed with traditional beliefs and marked by wars and poverty; there is a lack of pastors with solid biblical training.
9 countries
782 peoples
31.7% evangelicals
The 9 flags of the region. Tap one to open the country.
Gospel reach among the 782 peoples
144Unreached · 18.4% of peoples
638reached peoples
31.7%evangelicals (weighted average)
- 13% Unreached (102)
- 5.4% Minimally reached (42)
- 8.1% Superficially reached (63)
- 42.5% Partially reached (332)
- 31.1% Significantly reached (243)
Largest unreached peoples:
Shuwa Arab 4.1M
Fulani Adamawa 3.3M
Mafa 1.1M
The Bible in the languages of the region
918languages spoken
168With complete Bible
750Without complete Bible
71With no translation at all
- 18.3% With complete Bible (168)
- 74% Only portions of the Bible (679)
- 7.7% With no translation at all (71)
Source: Joshua Project and Progress.Bible. Estimates, may vary. Compiled from the data of each country in this region.
What it is
Central Africa comprises 9 countries largely covered by the planet’s second-largest tropical forest, the Congo Basin: Cameroon, Gabon, Congo, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, the Central African Republic, Chad, Angola, Equatorial Guinea and the island nation of São Tomé and Príncipe. It is a region of mighty rivers, dense equatorial forest and mineral wealth alongside decades of political instability.
Christianity arrived with a strong Catholic presence in the colonial era, and today shares the region with expanding evangelical churches and traditional religious practices that persist in more isolated forest communities. The Central African Republic and Chad remain among the continent’s poorest and most unstable countries, with churches serving amid recurring conflicts.
Of Central Africa’s 782 ethnic groups, 144 are still considered unreached. The regional average proportion of evangelicals is 17.3%, and 750 of the region’s 918 languages still have no Bible translation, one of the highest absolute numbers among African subregions.
Pray for this church serving amid forest and instability, that it may reach the peoples still without access to the gospel in their own language.
Context and characteristics
Congo equatorial forest
It is home to the world's second-largest tropical forest, with mighty rivers and isolated communities.
Mineral wealth and instability
The region is rich in minerals but faces decades of conflict over these resources.
Colonial Catholic heritage
Catholicism arrived with colonization and remains the largest Christian tradition in several of these countries.
Language barrier
It is one of the subregions with the highest absolute numbers of languages without any Bible translation.
Recurring conflicts
The Central African Republic and parts of the Democratic Republic of the Congo experience cycles of armed instability.
Countries in this region
Unreached peoples of this region 144 in total
What to pray for
Intercession
For Central Africa's 144 unreached people groups, many in isolated forest areas.
For Bible translation into the region's 750 languages that still have no Scripture.
For peace in the Central African Republic and areas of Congo affected by armed conflict.
For the church in Chad, a minority in a country with a strong Muslim presence in the north.
For isolated communities in the Congo forest, still without access to the gospel.
Against exploitation linked to the struggle over the region's mineral resources.
For the maturity of the church in Angola and Cameroon, that it may support neighboring nations.