New Temples Announced in October 2023 - Part IV: North America and Oceania

Savai'i Samoa Temple

The Savai'i Samoa Temple is the Church's second temple in Samoa following the Apia Samoa Temple (dedicated in 1983). The Church also announced a temple in neighboring American Samoa which is a United States Territory in 2019. It is unclear where the temple will be built on the island of Savai'i which has a population of 61,241 according to the most recent census data from 2021. The new temple will likely serve all six stakes on the island of Savai'i. The first stake on the island was organized in 1971, and the most recently organized stake on Savai'i was created in 2012. The Church has reported very slow, but steady, congregational growth on Savai'i. The Church reported 87,695 members and 165 congregations in Samoa as of year-end 2022. There are 20 stakes in Samoa. I added Samoa to the list of less likely locations to have a temple announced in September 2019.

Kahului Hawaii Temple

The Kahului Hawaii Temple is the Church's third temple in Hawaii following the Laie Hawaii Temple (dedicated in 1919) and the Kona Hawaii temple (dedicated in 2000). The new temple will likely service only two stakes - both of which are headquartered on Maui but which also service additional islands including Lanai and Molokai. Also, there are three Tongan-speaking congregations on the island of Maui. The Church organized its first stake in Kahului in 1975 followed by a second stake in 2014. Only one new congregation has been organized on Maui within the past decade, although no congregations have been discontinued. The Church in Hawaii reported 74,952 members, 143 congregations, 16 stakes, and 2 missions as of year-end 2022. I added Kahului to the list of less likely locations to have a temple announced in September 2019.

Fairbanks Alaska Temple

The Fairbanks Alaska Temple is the Church's second temple in Alaska following the Anchorage Alaska Temple (dedicated in 1999). The new temple will likely only serve two stakes - both of which operate in Fairbanks (organized in 1979 and 2021). The Church has experienced slow, but steady growth in the Fairbanks area for many years. Significant distance between Fairbanks and Anchorage appeared to be the biggest factor for why a temple was announced. It is a six-hour drive one way from Fairbanks to Anchorage. As of year-end 2022, the Church in Alaska reported 33,574 members, 81 congregations, 9 stakes, and 1 mission. I added Fairbanks to the list of less likely locations to have a temple announced in September 2019.

Vancouver Washington Temple

The Vancouver Washington Temple is the Church's sixth temple in Washington following the Seattle Washington Temple (dedicated in 1980), the Spokane Washington Temple (dedicated in 1999), the Columbia River Washington Temple (dedicated in 2001), the Moses Lake Washington Temple (dedicated in September 2023), and the Tacoma Washington Temple (announced in October 2022). The new temple will likely include six stakes in the Vancouver area which are currently assigned to the Portland Oregon Temple. The first stake created in Vancouver was organized in 1963, and the most recently organized stake was created in 2016. The Church organized a mission headquartered in Vancouver in 2013. The Church has historically experienced steady growth in the Vancouver area. As of year-end 2022, there were 281,389 members and 489 congregations in Washington. There are currently 60 stakes and 7 missions in the state. I added Vancouver to the list of less likely locations to have a temple announced in February 2023.

Colorado Springs Colorado Temple

The Colorado Springs Colorado Temple is the Church's fourth temple in Colorado following the Denver Colorado Temple (dedicated in 1986), the Fort Collins Colorado Temple (dedicated in 2016), and the Grand Junction Colorado Temple (announced in April 2021). As a Colorado Springs resident, I have long awaited the announcement of this temple given the steady growth of the Church in the city which is far enough away from the Denver Colorado Temple to warrant a separate temple. Moreover, the Church has owned a large parcel of land in the north part of the city for many years which is speculated to be the site for the new temple, although no official announcement has yet been made. The new temple will likely service eight stakes in Colorado (five in Colorado Springs, two in the San Luis Valley, one in Pueblo) and western portions of the Garden City Kansas Stake. The first stake in Colorado Springs was organized in 1960 followed by additional stakes in 1980, 1990, 1999, and 2016. The Church created the Colorado Colorado Springs Mission in 2002. As of year-end 2022, there were 148,708 members, 310 congregations, 35 stakes, and 4 missions in Colorado.

Tulsa Oklahoma Temple

The Tulsa Oklahoma Temple is the Church's second temple in Oklahoma following the Oklahoma City Oklahoma Temple which was dedicated in 2000. The new temple will likely service five stakes in northeastern Oklahoma which are assigned to the Oklahoma City Oklahoma Temple. The Church organized its first stake in Tulsa in 1960. Steady growth has occurred in northeastern Oklahoma which has resulted in the creation of additional stakes in 1978, 2014, and 2023 (2). As of year-end 2022, there were 51,847 members and 93 congregations in Oklahoma. Currently, there are 11 stakes and one mission in Oklahoma. I added Tulsa to the list of less likely locations to have a temple announced in September 2023.

Roanoke Virginia Temple

The Roanoke Virginia Temple is the Church's third temple in Virginia following the Richmond Virginia Temple (dedicated in May 2023) and the Winchester Virginia Temple (announced in April 2023). The new temple will likely service four stakes in western Virginia and two stakes in West Virginia. The first and only stake in Roanoke was organized in 1970. This area of Virginia has experienced slow growth for many years and is currently assigned to the Richmond Virginia temple. Roanoke was added to the list of less likely locations to have a temple announced in February 2022.

New Temples Announced in October 2023 - Part III: Latin America

Cancún México Temple

The Cancún México Temple is the Church's 24th temple in Mexico following the Mexico City Mexico Temple (dedicated in 1983), the Colonia Juárez Chihuahua Mexico Temple (dedicated in 1999), the Ciudad Juárez Mexico Temple (dedicated in 2000), the Hermosillo Sonora Mexico Temple (dedicated in 2000), the Oaxaca Mexico Temple (dedicated in 2000), the Tuxtla Gutiérrez Mexico Temple (dedicated in 2000), the Tampico Mexico Temple (dedicated in 2000), the Villahermosa Mexico Temple (dedicated in 2000), the Mérida Mexico Temple (dedicated in 2000), the Veracruz Mexico Temple (dedicated in 2000), the Guadalajara Mexico Temple (dedicated in 2001), the Monterrey Mexico Temple (dedicated in 2002), the Tijuana Mexico Temple (dedicated in 2015), the Puebla Mexico Temple (announced in 2018), the Querétaro Mexico Temple (announced in April 2021), the Torreón Mexico Temple (announced in April 2021), the Culiacán Mexico Temple (announced in October 2021), the San Luis Potosí Mexico Temple (announced in April 2022), the Mexico City Benemérito Mexico Temple (announced in April 2022), the Cuernavaca Mexico Temple (announced October 2022), the Pachuca Mexico Temple (announced October 2022), the Toluca Mexico Temple (announced October 2022), and the Tula Mexico Temple (announced October 2022). The new temple will likely serve the five stakes in the Mexican state of Quintana Roo, three of which are located in Cancún and were organized in 1995, 1998, and 2005. The newest stake in the area was organized in Playa Del Carmen in 2015. Cancún was added to my list of less likely locations to have a temple announced in September 2019. The Church organized its Mexico Cancún Mission in 2013. Slow congregational growth has occurred for the Church in Quintana Roo in recent years. Quintana Roo has the fourth highest percentage of self-identified Latter-day Saints in the population per the 2020 Mexican Census (0.43%). Moreover, Quintana Roo had the second highest percentage growth in the number of Latter-day Saints for Mexican states between 2010 and 2020 per official government census figures (21.5%). There were 1,507,720 Latter-day Saints and 1,863 congregations in Mexico as of year-end 2022. Currently, there are 228 stakes, 45 districts, and 32 missions in Mexico. Cancún is the 22nd most populous metropolitan area in Mexico with approximately 934,000 inhabitants.

Piura Peru Temple

The Piura Peru Temple is the Church's eighth temple in Peru following the Lima Peru Temple (dedicated in 1986), the Trujillo Peru Temple (dedicated in 2015), the Arequipa Peru Temple (dedicated in 2019), the Lima Peru Los Olivos Temple (announced in 2016, dedication scheduled for January 2024), the Cusco Peru Temple (announced in April 2022), the Chiclayo Peru Temple (announced in October 2022), and the Iquitos Peru Temple (announced in April 2023). I added Piura as a less likely location for a future temple announcement in September 2019. The new temple will likely service six stakes and one district in Piura and Tumbes Regions - all of which are within the boundaries of the Peru Piura Mission (organized in 1993). There are three stakes in Piura which were organized in 1983, 1990, and 1996. The most recently organized stake in the area is the Paita Peru Stake which was organized in 2019. The two other stakes in the area, located in Sullana and Tumbes, were organized in 2007. The Church has reported essentially stagnant congregational growth in the Piura and Tumbes Regions. Piura is Peru's fifth most populous city with 547,100 inhabitants. The Church reported 630,099 members and 799 congregations in Peru as of year-end 2022. Currently, there are 115 stakes, 17 districts, and 14 missions in Peru.

Huancayo Peru Temple

The Huancayo Peru Temple is the Church's ninth temple in Peru. Also, the announcement of the Huancayo Peru Temple marks the first time in Church history when two temples were announced in Peru on the same day. The Church operates three stakes in the Huancayo metropolitan area which were organized in 1984, 1989, and 2018. The Peru Huancayo Mission was organized in 2013. The new temple will likely serve seven stakes and one district in the central highlands of Peru east of Lima. The Church has experienced slow growth in this area of Peru for many years. Huancayo is Peru's seventh most populous metropolitan area with approximately 451,000 inhabitants. I added Huancayo to the list of less likely locations to have a temple announcement in September 2019.

Viña del Mar Chile Temple

The Viña del Mar Chile Temple is the Church's fifth temple in Chile following the Santiago Chile Temple (dedicated in 1983), the Concepción Chile Temple (dedicated in 2018), Antofagasta Chile Temple (announced in 2019), and the Santiago Chile West Temple (announced in October 2021). Viña del Mar Chile Temple has been on my list of more likely temples to be announced for many years because of the large number of stakes in the Viña del Mar area (eight stakes). The Church organized its first stake in Viña del Mar in 1974, and the Chile Viña del Mar Mission was organized in 1979. The Church used to operate an additional five more stakes in Viña del Mar/Valparaíso between the 1990s and early 2000s when these stakes were discontinued. The newest stake organized in the region is the Valparaíso Chile West Stake (created in 2015) which was a reinstatement of one of the original six stakes that were discontinued between 2002-2003. Aside from the one stake reinstatement, there have been no significant church growth developments in the Viña del Mar area in recent years. The number of congregations and stakes has remained unchanged for many years. The new temple will likely service 12 stakes and 2 districts in the Viña del Mar area and in areas north of Santiago. The Church reported 604,302 members and 572 congregations as of year-end 2022. Currently, there are 76 stakes, 13 districts, and 10 missions in Chile, with another district planned to become a stake this month (Linares). The Viña del Mar/Valparaíso metropolitan area is the second most populous metropolitan area in Chile with approximately one million inhabitants.

Goiânia Brazil Temple

The Goiânia Brazil Temple is the Church's 21st temple in Brazil following the São Paulo Brazil Temple (dedicated in 1978), the Recife Brazil Temple (dedicated in 2000), the Porto Alegre Brazil Temple (dedicated in 2000), the Campinas Brazil Temple (dedicated in 2002), the Curitiba Brazil Temple (dedicated in 2008), the Manaus Brazil Temple (dedicated in 2012), the Fortaleza Brazil Temple (dedicated in 2019), the Rio de Janeiro Brazil Temple (dedicated in 2022), the Belem Brazil Temple (dedicated in 2022), the Brasília Brazil Temple (dedicated in 2023), the Salvador Brazil Temple (announced in 2018), the São Paulo Brazil East Temple (announced in 2020), the Belo Horizonte Brazil Temple (announced in April 2021), the Vitória Brazil Temple (announced in October 2021), the Maceió Brazil Temple (announced in April 2022), the Santos Brazil Temple (announced in April 2022), the Londrina Brazil Temple (announced in October 2022), the Riberão Prêto Brazil Temple (announced in October 2022), the Teresina Brazil Temple (announced in April 2023), and the Natal Brazil Temple (announced in April 2023). I added Goiânia to the list of less likely locations for a temple announcement in September 2022. The new temple announcement came less than one month after the dedication of the Brasília Brazil Temple. The Goiânia Brazil Temple will likely include seven stakes and two districts in its temple district. There are three stakes in Goiânia (organized in 1987, 1996, and 2014). The Rio Verde Brazil Stake is the newest stake to be organized in the area (organized in 2016). The Church has generally experienced slow, but steady, growth in this area of Brazil, although there are many medium-sized cities without an official Church presence. Goiânia is the 11th most populous city in Brazil and has approximately 2.55 million inhabitants. The Church organized the Brazil Goiânia Mission in 1998. The Church reported 1,472,521 members and 2,176 congregations as of year-end 2022. Currently, there are 285 stakes, 39 districts, and 36 missions in Brazil.

João Pessoa Brazil Temple

The João Pessoa Brazil Temple is the Church's 22nd temple in Brazil. The Church has announced two temples in Brazil each General Conference since April 2022. João Pessoa Brazil Temple has long been on my list of more likely locations to have a temple announced due to steady growth and distance from the Recife Brazil Temple. There are five stakes in the João Pessoa metropolitan area that were organized in 1980, 1992, 1996, 2007, and 2016. The new temple will likely include eight stakes and two districts - all but one stake of which are located in Paraíba State. João Pessoa is the 18th most populous metropolitan area in Brazil with 1.16 million inhabitants. The Church organized the Brazil João Pessoa Mission in 1998.

New Temples Announced in October 2023 - Part II: Africa

Calabar Nigeria Temple

The Calabar Nigeria Temple will be the Church's fifth temple in Nigeria following temples in Aba (dedicated in 2005), Lagos (announced in 2018), Benin City (announced in 2020), and Eket (announced in October 2022). This marks the first time the Church has ever announced so many new temples in a country with only one dedicated temple since Mexico had at one point nine temples announced in February 1999 before a second temple was dedicated in March 1999 (which was the Colonia Juarez Mexico Temple). The new temple will likely include all four stakes and the one district located in Cross Rivers State - the smallest prospective temple district in Nigeria among temples announced. However, the Church in Cross Rivers State has experienced rapid growth during the past two decades. The first stake was organized in Calabar in 2002 from the Calabar Nigeria District, and two additional stakes were organized in the city in 2015 and 2017. The Church has maintained an official presence in Calabar since the early 1980s. Many members in the area speak Efik. Two of the stakes in Calabar appear likely to divide in the foreseeable future due to the steady creation of new wards, suggesting that there may be five stakes in the city within the next 2-3 years. Moreover, the new temple will also likely include the nearby Akamkpa Nigeria Stake (organized in 2022) and the Ugep Nigeria District (also organized in 2022). The Church previously headquartered a mission in the city of Calabar until it was relocated to Uyo within the past decade. I added Calabar to my list of likely new temples to be announced in September 2019 as a less likely location to have a temple announced.

With the steady creation of new stakes and significant active membership growth in many areas of the country (there are currently 70 stakes, 15 districts, and approximately 225,000 members in the country), Nigeria appears a likely candidate for many new temples to be announced, especially if temples service small numbers of stakes like the future Calabar Nigeria Temple. Below is a list of likely locations for future temple announcements in Nigeria (with the current number of stakes and districts likely to be serviced by each temple), given the development of the newly announced Calabar Nigeria Temple.

• Abuja (3 stakes, 1 district)
  
• Enugu (5 stakes, 4 districts)
• Ibadan (6 stakes, 3 districts)
  
• Port Harcourt (8 stakes, 1 district)
• Umuahia (6 stakes)
  
• Uyo (6 stakes)
  

Cape Coast Ghana Temple

The Cape Coast Ghana Temple is the Church's third temple in Ghana following the Accra Ghana Temple (dedicated in 2004) and the Kumasi Ghana Temple (announced in April 2021). The Church organized some of its first congregations in Ghana in Cape Coast in the late 1970s. The Church created its first stake in Cape Coast in 1991 followed by two additional stakes in the Cape Coast area in 2016 and 2021. The new temple will likely service the seven stakes and three districts located within the boundaries of the Ghana Cape Coast Mission (organized in 2005). I have included Cape Coast as a more likely location for a future temple for at least a couple years ago given the large number of stakes assigned to the Accra Ghana Temple, steady growth in the Cape Coast area, and distance to the Accra Ghana Temple. The Church reported 101,924 members at year-end 2022. There are now 29 stakes and 11 districts in Ghana.

Luanda Angola Temple

The Luanda Angola Temple is the Church's first temple in Angola. The temple announcement is unprecedented for Africa as there has never been a temple announced in an African country with as few Latter-day Saints as Angola (4,760 as of year-end 2022) and where there is only one stake (although this stake appears likely to divide in the near future). The Johannesburg South Africa Temple was previously the temple announced in an African country with the fewest members at the time of the announcement (approximately 8,500 members in two stakes in 1981). I added Luanda to the less likely list of potential locations for a temple announcement in February 2022. There are numerous factors that may have influenced the announcement of a temple in Angola despite few members of the Church in the country and a fairly recent Church establishment (first branch was organized in 1996, the first and only mission was organized in 2013, and the first and only stake was organized in 2018). Securing land is very difficult in Luanda, and the city ranks among the most expensive cities to live in within the world. Thus, it may take a considerable amount of time to secure a suitable site to build the temple. Also, the Luanda Angola Stake is a remote stake with no other nearby Portuguese-speaking countries with an established Church presence. Finally, access to temples in other countries appears more difficult than other African nations due to distance and travel costs. Furthermore, the Church has experienced unprecedented growth and expansion into many areas of the country within the past 1-2 years. The new temple will likely service only one stake and one district at present, although there is a strong probability that additional stakes will be organized in the immediate future. Angola did not even rank within the top 10 countries with the most members without a temple per year-end 2022 membership figures, although with rapid membership growth in 2023 in many areas, there may be as many as 6,000-7,000 members by the end of the year (which would have placed Angola as high as fourth among countries with the most members without a temple).

Mbuji-Mayi Democratic Republic of the Congo (DR Congo) Temple

The Mbuji-Mayi DR Congo Temple will be the Church's fourth temple in the DR Congo following temples in Kinshasa (dedicated in 2019), Lubumbashi (announced in 2020), and Kananga (announced October 2021). I added Mbuji-Mayi as a less likely location for a future temple announcement in February 2023. The Church created its first mission in Mbuji-Mayi in 2016, and this mission divided earlier in 2023 to create a separate mission in Kananga. This area of the central DR Congo, known as the Kasai Region, has experienced some of the most rapid growth in the worldwide Church in modern history. The first branches were created in the region in 1997, and today there are now nine stakes in the region with the creation of several new stakes appearing imminent due to rapid growth in the numbers of active members. The new temple in Mbuji-Mayi will likely include six stakes in its temple district based upon the current organization of the Church in the area. A separate temple for Mbuji-Mayi in addition to the previously announced Kananga DR Congo Temple appeared warranted due to extreme difficulties with travel in the DR Congo and the development of a strong center of strength in Mbuji-Mayi. The Church organized its first stake in Mbuji-Mayi in 2016 followed by a second stake in the city in 2022. Other stakes likely to be assigned to the new temple district are located in Luputa (two stakes created in 2011 and 2021), Mwene-Ditu (organized in 2019 and currently has 12 wards), and Ngandajika (organized in 2023). There were 102,862 Latter-day Saints in the DR Congo as of year-end 2022. Given rapid growth, extremely high member activity rates, and travel difficulties, the Church in the DR Congo will likely announce additional temples in the coming years. Some likely locations in the DR Congo for temple announcements in the next five years include the following:

• Kinshasa (second temple) - 5-6 stakes 
• Kolwezi (1 stakes, but this stake appears likely to divide in the immediate future)
  
• Likasi (3 stakes - one of which appears ready to divide in the immediate future [Kolwezi])
  
• Luputa or Mwene-Ditu (3 stakes - one of which appears ready to divide in the immediate future
• Matadi (1 district that appears close to become a stake and several nearby mission branches that may be organized into a district in Muanda)
  

New Temples Announced in October 2023 - Part I: Asia

Due to the large number of temples announced today, I will be separating my analysis of new temple announcements into separate blog posts by world region.

Laoag Philippines Temple

The Laoag Philippines Temple will be the Church's 13th temple in the Philippines following temples in Manila (dedicated in 1984), Cebu (dedicated in 2010), Urdaneta (announced in 2010), Alabang (announced in 2017), Cagayan de Oro (announced in 2018), Davao (announced in 2018), Bacolod City (announced in 2019), Tacloban City (announced in 2021), Naga (announced in October 2022),  Santiago (announced in October 2022), Tuguegarao City (announced in April 2023), and Iloilo (announced in April 2023). The Philippines is the country with the fewest completed temples (2) with the most temples announced or under construction (11). The new temple will likely have one of the smallest temple districts in the Philippines, as there are only four stakes and two districts that appear likely to be assigned to the new temple (only the Tuguegarao Philippines Temple has a smaller prospective temple district with three stakes and two districts). Travel in the Philippines is often costly and time-consuming which has likely played a role with the announcement of temples in locations with few stakes like Laoag. The Church has operated a stake in Laoag since 1989 and created the Philippines Laoag Mission in 2004. The newest stake to be created in the Laoag area was in Vigan in 2021. There are approximately 850,000 Latter-day Saints in the Philippines organized into 126 stakes and 55 districts. 

Osaka Japan Temple

The Osaka Japan Temple will be the Church's fifth temple in Japan following the Tokyo Japan Temple (dedicated in 1980), the Fukuoka Japan Temple (dedicated in 2000), the Sapporo Japan Temple (dedicated in 2016), and the Okinawa Japan Temple (scheduled for dedication in November 2023). The new temple will probably service six stakes and two districts in southern Honshu and Shikoku. The Osaka Japan Stake was organized in 1972 and the area is serviced by the Japan Kobe Mission. The Church has experienced two significant iterations of consolidating stakes and congregations in the Osaka area during the past 25 years. Today, there is only one stake in Osaka, whereas there used to be four stakes in Osaka in the 1990s. I have considered Osaka as a more likely location for a temple announcement due to distance to Tokyo and several stakes in the Osaka-Kyoto-Kobe metropolitan area. The Church in Japan has experienced essentially stagnant membership growth in recent years, and there are currently approximately 130,000 Latter-day Saints in Japan. 

Ulaanbaatar Mongolia Temple

Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia has been on my short list of likely locations to have a temple announced for many years. The new temple will be the Church's first temple in Mongolia. Prior to today's announcement, Mongolia ranked as the country with the second most Latter-day Saints without a temple. There were approximately 12,500 Latter-day Saints in Mongolia as of year-end 2022. The Church in Mongolia is extremely far away from the nearest temples in Seoul, South Korea; Taipei, Taiwan; and Hong Kong, China. The new temple will be one of the most remote temples in the world once completed. The Church first established a branch in Mongolia in 1993 and experienced rapid growth during the 1990s and 2000s. There are now two stakes in Ulaanbaatar which were organized in 2009 and 2016. One district also operates in Darkhan. Slow membership growth and stagnant congregational growth have occurred during the past decade. Mongolia has one of the highest percentages of Latter-day Saints in the general population among Asian nations, as 0.37% of the Mongolian population was a Latter-day Saint as of year-end 2022 (one Latter-day Saint per 272 people). The new temple will service the two stakes and one district in Mongolia, and it may also service branches and one district in Siberia and the Russian Far East.

20 New Temples Announced

Today, President Russell M. Nelson announced plans to construct 20 more temples in the following locations:

• Savai’i, Samoa
• Kahului, Hawaii
• Fairbanks, Alaska
• Vancouver, Washington
• Colorado Springs, Colorado
• Tulsa, Oklahoma
• Roanoke, Virginia
• Cancún, Mexico
• Piura, Peru
• Huancayo, Peru
• Viña del Mar, Chile
• Goiânia, Brazil
• João Pessoa, Brazil
• Cape Coast, Ghana
• Calabar, Nigeria
• Luanda, Angola
• Mbuji-Mayi, Democratic Republic of the Congo
• Laoag, Philippines
• Osaka, Japan
• Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia

With today's announcement, there are now 335 temples that are announced, under construction, or dedicated.

In the coming 1-2 weeks, I will be publishing posts that provide more information about these temple announcements.

More than 71,000 Full-Time Missionaries Serving and Predictions for New Missions in 2024

In his General Conference address yesterday, Elder Neil L. Andersen mentioned that there are more than 71,000 full-time missionaries serving throughout the world. This marks an increase of at least 8,456 full-time missionaries serving from year-end 2022 when there were 62,544 full-time missionaries serving - a 13.5% increase in nine months. This is a major increase in the number of members serving full-time missions within a short period of time. The Church would have an increase of 11,275 missionaries by year-end 2023 for a total of 73,819 if the assumption is made that the average of 939.56 more missionaries serving each month is sustained until the end of December. Since 1978, there have been only two years when the number of full-time missionaries serving has increased at a more rapid rate: 2022 (14.7%) and 2013 (40.8%). However, these two years had artificially higher numbers of new missionaries serving because of delays in members serving missions from prior years due to the COVID-19 pandemic (2022) and the lowering of the minimum age for missionary service (2013). The next year with the highest percentage increase in the number of full-time missionaries was 1989 when there was a 10.0% increase in the number of missionaries serving compared to year-end 1988. 

It is unclear what is driving this acceleration in the number of full-time missionaries serving. Members postponing full-time missionary service due to the COVID-19 pandemic may account for some of this increase, although this likely accounts for a small percentage of recently called full-time missionaries given that it appears that most members who postponed missionary service began their service in 2022. I made a post in early July 2023 about additional details regarding the number of full-time missionaries serving, as the Church had disclosed during its annual new mission presidents training seminar that there were 67,800 full-time missionaries serving as of June 2023. The Church at the time also predicted that there may be as many as 72,000 full-time missionaries serving by the end of 2023. As I noted in my post in July, "This increase has occurred even though there is a smaller demographic of mission-aged young adults in the Church (which is supported by historical children-of-record annual increase numbers, which did not surpass 100,000 until 2008), suggesting an increasing percentage of young single adults serving full-time missions." Currently, the number of full-time missionaries serving has surpassed the number of full-time missionaries serving in year-end 2016 (70,946) - the most recent year that had more than 70,000 missionaries serving. Only three years have had more full-time missionaries serving than at present: 2015 (74,079), 2013 (83,035), and 2014 (85,147). 

A statistic that can give insights into full-time missionary service is the percentage of church membership currently serving full-time missions. See the graph below. As of year-end 2022, 0.37% of church membership were serving a full-time mission - comparable to the percentage of membership serving full-time missions in the late 2000s and early 2010s. However, approximately 0.55% of church membership was serving full-time missions between the late 1980s and early 2000s. To put this into perspective, if 0.55% of church membership were serving full-time missions as of year-end 2022, there would be 93,514 full-time missionaries serving. The decrease in the percentage of church membership serving missions since the early 2000s appears attributed to gentrification of church membership caused by decreased birth rates, low member activity rates in most of the countries with the largest church memberships, and potentially lower rates of full-time missionary service among young adults, particularly in countries where the Church reports large numbers of members.

The number of convert baptisms also increased by 25% in the first quarter of 2023 compared to the first quarter of 2022 as I noted in my July 2023 post. If this trend continues for the rest of 2023, there will be an increase in the number of convert baptisms that is approximately twice the rate of the increase in the number of full-time missionaries. If this rate continues for the rest of the year (i.e., if there are 25% more convert baptisms in 2023 compared to 2022), there would be 265,215 convert baptisms for the year - the highest reported by the Church since 2014 when there were 296,803 convert baptisms. If there are 72,000 missionaries serving at the end of 2023, then there will be an average of 3.68 convert baptisms per missionary. However, the number of converts baptized would remain below many years between 1989 and 1999 when there were as many as 330,877 converts baptized in a single year (1990). The average number of converts baptized per missionary has decreased substantially over the past several decades from a high of 8.03 in 1989 to a low of 2.43 in 2020 (see graph below).

Finally, an increase in the number of full-time missionaries serving raises the likelihood that the Church will organize new missions to accommodate this increase, especially if it is anticipated that this increase will be sustained in the coming years. The Church reached an all-time high of 421 missions in 2016 and 2017. There are currently 414 missions worldwide. If the Church were to keep its ratio of 152 missionaries per mission as of year-end 2022 and there are 72,000 missionaries by the end of 2023, the Church would need to have a net increase of 62 missions in 2024 to maintain this ratio. However, decisions on where new missions will be organized will likely depend on what world region recent increases in the number of full-time missionaries serving has come from, with new missions most likely to be organized in the world regions with the greatest increases in the number of new full-time missionaries serving. See below for a list locations that appear likely to have new missions created in the near future along with the number of stakes/districts/mission branches likely to be assigned to each mission if it is organized. Coincidentally, there are 100 locations listed below. I did not plan to have a nice, round number like this, and it instead came from reviewing current mission boundaries and identifying what locations appear most likely to have missions organized given a combination of factors such as the size of the population to be served by the mission, current church infrastructure in the area, recent growth trends, and opportunities for expansion (rarely are locations on this list a perfect combination of all four of these factors and instead many of these prospective mission locations are based on just one or two criteria being met). This list was initially posted on this blog in March 2023, and it has been updated given these recent developments with increases in the number of full-time missionaries.

AFRICA (25 missions)

• Cote d'Ivoire Daloa (1 stake, 6 districts) 
• Democratic Republic of the Congo Likasi (3 stakes)
  
• Democratic Republic of the Congo Kinshasa (third mission) (4 stakes)
  
• Gabon Libreville (4 mission branches)
  
• Ghana Accra (third mission) (4-5 stakes)
  
• Ghana Koforidua (3 stakes, 2 districts)
  
• Ghana Kumasi (second mission) (2-3 stakes, 2-3 districts)
  
• Ghana Takoradi (2 stakes, 2 districts) 
• Ghana Tamale (1 district)
  
• Kenya Eldoret (3 districts)
• Kenya Nairobi (second mission) (1-2 stakes, 1-3 districts)
• Liberia Gbarnga (5 mission branches)
  
• Liberia Monrovia (second mission) (3 stakes)
  
• Malawi Lilongwe (2 districts) 
• Mauritius and Reunion (2 districts)
  
• Nigeria Benin City (second mission) (4-5 stakes)
• Nigeria Calabar (4 stakes, 1 district)
• Nigeria Eket (6 stakes)
  
• Nigeria Lagos (second mission) (4 stakes)
• Nigeria Makurdi (3 districts)
  
• Nigeria Warri (3 stakes, 3 districts)
• Senegal Dakar (1 district, several mission branches in neighboring countries)
  
• Sierra Leone Bo (4 stakes, 1 district) 
• Sierra Leone Freetown (second mission) (2-3 stakes, 1 district)
  
• Togo Lome (2 stakes)

ASIA (9 missions)

• Georgia Tbilisi (2 mission branches) 
  
• Korea Daejeon (4 stakes)
  
• Middle East/African North Service Mission (2 stakes, 3 districts) 
• Philippines General Santos (3 stakes, 3 districts)
  
• Philippines Ormoc (3 stakes, 4 districts)
  
• Philippines Palawan/Mindoro (1 stake, 4 districts)
  
• Philippines Tuguegarao (3 stakes, 2 districts) 
• Sri Lanka Colombo (1 district)
  
• Thailand Ubon (1 stake, 1 district)

EUROPE (10 missions)

• Austria Vienna (2 stakes)
  
• Belgium Brussels (2 stakes)
• France Paris (second mission) (3 stakes) 
• France Toulouse (2 stakes)
  
• Germany Düsseldorf (2 stakes) 
• Iceland Reykjavik (4 mission branches)
  
• Ireland Dublin (2 stakes, 1 district) 
• Italy Palermo (1 stake)
  
• Portugal Porto (3 stakes)
• Spain Granada (5 stakes)
  

LATIN AMERICA AND THE CARIBBEAN (33 missions)

• Argentina Buenos Aires (fifth mission) (5-6 stakes)
  
• Argentina Posadas (2 stakes, 5 districts)
• Argentina Tucumán (4 stakes, 1 district) 
• Belize Belmopan (2 districts)
  
• Bolivia Riberalta (3 districts)
• Bolivia Tarija (4 stakes, 2 districts)
  
• Brazil Juazeiro do Norte (1 stake, 2 districts, 2 mission branches)
  
• Brazil Joinville (5 stakes)
  
• Brazil Manaus (second mission) (5-6 stakes)
• Brazil Novo Hamburgo (6 stakes, 1 district) 
• Brazil Porto Velho (2 stakes)
  
• Brazil São Luís (2 stakes)
• Brazil São Paulo (sixth mission) (4-5 million, ~7 stakes)
• Brazil Sorocaba (5 stakes, 2 districts)
• Chile La Serena (3 stakes, 3 districts) 
• Colombia Bucaramanga (4 stakes)
  
• Cuba Havana (1 district)
• Ecuador Machala (4 stakes, 1 district) 
• Mexico Acapulco (3 stakes, 1 district)
• Mexico Ciudad Obregón (3 stakes, 3 districts)
  
• Mexico Coatzacoalcos (3 stakes, 3 districts)
  
• Mexico Juchitán (3 stakes, 4 districts) 
• Mexico Morelia (4 stakes, 1 district)
  
• Mexico Reynosa (5 stakes, 1 district)
• Mexico San Luis Potosí (3 stakes)
  
• Mexico Tijuana (second mission) (5 stakes)
• Mexico Toluca (3 stakes)
  
• Panama Panama City (second mission) - (3-4 stakes, 1-3 districts)
  
• Peru Lima (seventh mission) (6-7 stakes)
• Peru Pisco (4 stakes, 2 districts)
  
• Peru Pucallpa (2 stakes) 
• Peru Puno (3 stakes)
• Peru Tacna (5 stakes)
  

NORTH AMERICA (16 missions)

• Arizona Scottsdale (~10 stakes)
  
• Canada Toronto (second mission) (4 stakes)
• Colorado Grand Junction (5 stakes)
  
• Connecticut Hartford (5 stakes)
  
• Florida Orland (second mission) (5 stakes)
• Georgia Macon (5 stakes)
• Idaho Nampa (~20 stakes)
  
• Illinois Peoria (4 stakes)
  
• Missouri Springfield (5 stakes) 
• Nevada Las Vegas (3 mission) (10 stakes)
  
• North Carolina Raleigh (second mission) (6-7 stakes)
• Ohio Cleveland (5 stakes)
  
• Oklahoma Tulsa (5 stakes)
• Pennsylvania Harrisburg (6 stakes)
• Texas Longview (5 stakes)
  
• Wyoming Casper (5 stakes)
  

OCEANIA (7 missions)

• Australia Brisbane (second mission) (~6 stakes)
  
• Australia Sydney (second mission) (~6 stakes)
• French Polynesia (second mission) (~5 stakes) 
• Kiribati Tarawa (2 stakes, 3 districts)
  
• Papua New Guinea Daru (1 stake, 3 districts)
  
• Samoa (second mission) (~12 stakes)
  
• Solomon Islands Honiara (1 district)