New Stakes Created in Brazil and Texas; Two Stakes Discontinued in Hong Kong

Brazil

The Church organized a new stake in Brazil in Rio Grande do Sul. The Gramado Brazil Stake was organized on July 23rd from the Gramado Brazil District (created in 2005). The new stake includes the following five wards and one branch: the Canela 1st, Canela 2nd, Gramado 1st, Gramado 2nd, and  Taquara Wards and the Nova Petrópolis Branch. The new stake is the Church's fourth new stake to be created in southern Brazil in the past few months.

There are now 285 stakes and 39 districts in Brazil

Texas 

The Church organized a new stake in the Texas Panhandle. The Amarillo Texas East Stake was created on August 13th from a division of the Amarillo Texas Stake (organized in 1981). The new stake includes the following five wards and three branches: the Bishop Hills, Borger, Childress, Pampa, and Tascosa Wards, and the Estacado (Spanish), Dumas, and Perryton Branches. There are now four stakes in the Texas Panhandle - the other two of which are located in Lubbock (organized in 1967 and 2014). 

There are now 79 stakes and 2 districts in Texas.

Hong Kong

The Church discontinued two stakes in Hong Kong. The Hong Kong China Kowloon East Stake (created in 1980, discontinued in 2006, reinstated in 2016) and Hong Kong China Lion Rock (organized in 2016) were discontinued and consolidated with neighboring stakes. Nine wards were discontinued as part of the reorganization. Now, there are four stakes and one district in Hong Kong - the same number of stakes and districts that operated from 2006-2015. There are now 21 wards in Hong Kong - the fewest number of wards in Hong Kong since prior to 1987. Church membership has been in decline in Hong Kong since 2020. It is unclear how much of this decline (the Church has historically experienced slow membership growth or stagnant membership growth during the past couple decades in Hong Kong) is attributed to tightening political freedoms in this special administrative region of China during the past few years. However, there was a major emphasis by the Asia Area Presidency in the mid-2010s to create smaller wards which resulted in the reinstatement of a previously closed stake and the creation of a sixth stake in 2016. Click here to access membership and congregational data in Hong Kong. Member activity rates in Hong Kong have numbered among the lowest in the world, with 12-14% of membership regularly attending church in the late 2010s.

Updated Country Profile - Hong Kong

Click here to access the updated Reaching the Nations country profile for Hong Kong. The Church in Hong Kong experiences one of the lowest member activity rates in the world. Membership and congregational growth trends have most closely mirrored Western Europe, albeit nominal church membership accounts for a greater percentage of the population in Hong Kong than any Western European or Asian country except for the Philippines, Portugal, and Mongolia. Nevertheless, convert retention rates in the 2010s ranked among the highest in Asia based on reports from approximately one dozen returned missionaries who served in Hong Kong since 2010. Hong Kong boasts the fifth most stakes in Asia. See below for the Future Prospects section for this article:

Continued strong church participation and activity among church-going Latter-day Saints in Hong Kong has sustained leadership capable of meeting the responsibilities demanded by stakes, but extremely low member activity rates among the general Church membership threaten the stability of Cantonese wards due to comparatively few active members. Quick-baptize policies and practices and low standards for convert baptisms in previous decades have compromised the harvest of the China Hong Kong Mission and have fueled very low member activity rates at present despite significant improvements in convert retention rates in the 2010s. This has posed long-term challenges for strengthening the local church and has drained the resources of local congregations in efforts to reclaim less active and never-active members still on church rolls. Maintaining increased standards for convert baptism and emphasis on the need to develop consistent gospel habits will be key to the Church’s long-term prospects for real growth. Materialism and high cost of living have contributed to low birth rates among Latter-day Saints and exacerbate low receptivity. Local leaders stressing participation in seminary and institute may help address retention and member inactivity issues by providing opportunities for less active members and new converts to socially integrate with active membership and strengthen their testimonies and doctrinal understanding.

New Stakes Created in Guatemala, Hong Kong, Nigeria, and Texas; District Created in Nigeria

Guatemala
The Church organized a new stake in Guatemala City on June 5th. The Guatemala City San Cristóbal Stake was organized from a division of the Guatemala City Mariscal Stake. The new stake includes at least four wards and one branch: the Balcones, Panorama, Peronia, and San Cristóbal Wards, and the Jerusalén Branch. It is likely that the Jerusalén Branch became a ward when the stake was organized, or that another ward or two will be assigned to the newly organized stake. The new stake is of special interest because it was organized from a division of the Guatemala City Mariscal Stake - a stake that includes congregations from only stake to ever be discontinued in Guatemala City: the Guatemala City Monte María Stake (discontinued in 2008).

There are now 46 stakes and 16 districts in Guatemala.

Hong Kong
The Church organized two new stakes in Hong Kong on June 5th.

The Hong Kong China Kowloon East Stake was organized from a division of the Hong Kong China Kowloon (renamed Hong Kong China Kowloon West) and the Hong Kong China (renamed Hong Kong Island China) Stakes. The new stake includes the following five wards: the Kowloon City, Kwun Tong, Po Lam, Tseung Kwan O, and Tsim Sha Tsui Wards. The new stake is technically a reinstatement of the original Hong Kong China Kowloon East Stake that operated between 1980 and 2006.

The Hong Kong China Lion Rock Stake was organized from a division of the Hong Kong China Kowloon (renamed Hong Kong China Kowloon West), the Hong Kong China (renamed Hong Kong Island China), and Hong Kong China Harbour Stakes. The new stake includes the following five wards: the Cheung Sha Wan, Ngau Tau Kok, Sham Shui Po, Shatin, and Tai Wai Wards.

There are now six stakes and one district in Hong Kong.

Nigeria
A new stake was created in Akwa Ibom State. The Ikot Ekpene Nigeria Stake was organized from the Ikot Ekpene Nigeria District on May 15th. Information on which branches became wards in the former district remains unavailable. However, most of the seven branches have appeared to become wards. The Ikot Ekpene Nigeria District was organized from a handful of mission branches in the Ikot Ekpene area in 2009.

There are now eight stakes and three districts in Akwa Ibom State.

A new district was organized in Enugu State on June 5th. The Nsukka Nigeria District was organized from the following three mission branches: the Nsukka 1st, Nsukka 2nd, and Obollo-Afor Branches. Rapid LDS growth has occurred in the Nigeria Enugu Mission within the past five years as all three stakes and two of the four member districts were created during this time period.

There are now 36 stakes and 19 stakes in Nigeria

Texas
The Church organized a new stake in the Austin area on June 5th. The Cedar Park Texas Stake was organized from a division of the Austin Texas, Austin Texas Oak Hills, and Round Rock Texas Stakes. The new stake includes the following five wards and one branch: the Carriage Hills, Cedar Park, Cypress Creek, Marble Falls, and New Hope Wards, and the Llano Branch. With only five wards and one branch, the new stake is one of the stakes with the fewest congregations organized in Texas within the past 15 years.

There are now 70 stakes and three districts in Texas.

Countries With High Inactivity

A good indicator for how many members of the Church participate in worship services in a particular country is by taking the ratio of members to congregations. Wards and branches need to have leadership in order to function and if that leadership is absent or small, new congregations do not get formed as often or congregations combine. This indicator works well for countries that have more stakes and districts. In places like Russia or Thailand, it does not provide as accurate of a picture because of the large number of branches in those countries.

Here is a list of the 15 countries with the highest members to congregation ratio. Countries with less than 1,000 have been omitted from the list.

1. Chile - 888
2. Hong Kong - 684
3. Bolivia - 632
4. El Salvador - 619
5. Nicaragua - 615
6. Ecuador - 598
7. Peru - 588
8. Colombia - 560
9. Mexico - 559
10. Brazil - 553
11. Honduras - 552
12. Uruguay - 551
13. South Korea - 546
14. Dominican Republic - 543
15. Philippines - 533