Thursday, March 28, 2019

Updated Country Profile - Trinidad and Tobago

Click here to access the updated Reaching the Nations country profile for Trinidad and Tobago. The Church has maintained a continuous presence in the country for over 40 years, yet there remain only 3,500 members (15% of whom regularly attend church - one of the lowest member activity rates in the Caribbean). The Church reported significant growth in Trinidad during the 2000s which ultimately culminated in the creation of the first stake in 2009, but this growth has significantly slowed in the 2010s primarily due to problems with securing an adequate number of full-time missionary visas, poor member-missionary participation, and very low member activity rates. See below for the Future Prospects section of this article:

The outlook for future growth appears mixed. The Church continues to operate a stake in Trinidad despite comparatively few members and low activity rates. Also, the reduced geographic size of the mission since 2015 permits greater mission president oversight and resources for proselytism and expansion. Moreover, the population remains receptive to proselytism efforts by the Church. However, the Church struggles with dependence on foreign, full-time missionaries to meet local proselytism needs. Given recent limitations with the number of visas granted to the Church for foreign full-time missionaries, the Church is understaffed in its missionary force on the islands. This situation underscores the need for greater self-sufficiency both in the Church in Trinidad and Tobago, and in the Caribbean as a whole, to meet local proselytism needs. The Church continues to struggle with greater local leadership development as evidenced by no new wards or branches organized since the late 2000s. As a result, no new wards or branches appear likely to be organized within the foreseeable future.

1 comment:

  1. Kouva Branch showed some promise with the Davis married couple in the late 1990s. Not sure how that unit has done since.

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