Updated Country Profile - The Gambia

Click here to access the updated country profile for The Gambia - a small West African country inhabited by two million people whose population is 95% Muslim and 4% Christian. The Church reported 19 members in the country in 2013. There remains no official branch despite widespread religious freedom and the operation of many other Christian denominations in the country. The unprecedented expansion of the Church into traditionally Muslim areas of West Africa since 2016 may indicate the Church will soon establish a presence in The Gambia as well. For example, area leadership noted in 2018 that they had recently visited and met with Gambian members. See below for the Future Prospects section of this article:

The Gambia is one of the most tolerant Muslim-majority nations in West Africa and offers significant opportunity for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints to grow due to freedom of religion despite the slow growth of most Christian denominations over the past decade. The recent establishment of the Church in Senegal, Guinea, and Mali has immediately produced good results and rapid growth in fledgling branches and member groups. However, other nearby nations with larger populations may take precedence over The Gambia due to limited missionary resources allocated to Muslim West Africa and the cautious manner in which the Church has expanded its presence in Africa. Gambian members petitioning area leadership to organize a member group in Banjul appears the most likely method that the Church will begin to establish an official presence in The Gambia. Humanitarian and development needs provide excellent opportunities for the Church to serve and establish a presence. Delaying an official Church establishment may result in missed opportunities if religious freedom conditions deteriorate or the population becomes more receptivity to Christianity one day and many join missionary-oriented Christian faiths that have maintained a long-term presence. The placement of even one senior missionary couple in Banjul could offer significant contributions to laying the foundation for consistent humanitarian activity and the initial establishment of the Church. Assignment of The Gambia to a full-time mission, such as the Sierra Leone Freetown Mission, would also permit greater attention and resources to establish a Church presence. Prospects for a future mission one day headquartered in Dakar, Senegal would also likely significantly improve the likelihood that the Church would establish an official presence in The Gambia complete with proselytizing missionaries.