The Gambia Dedicated for Missionary Work

The Church reported that Apostle Elder D. Todd Christofferson dedicated the West African nation of The Gambia to missionary work on February 24th. Elder Christofferson also met with the Gambian president during his visit and attended the baptism of 11 new converts in Banjul - the Gambian capital. These converts had been taught by missionaries in the Cote d'Ivoire Abidjan West Mission - the mission that includes the country of Senegal. The Gambia remains officially unassigned to a full-time mission. Church membership as of year-end 2021 in The Gambia appeared to total 12, and with the addition of the new converts there are now 23 Latter-day Saints in the country. The Church reported 19 Latter-day Saints in The Gambia in 2013, although there was no organized Church presence or regular contact from area leadership until approximately 2018 when area leadership visited Banjul to meet with isolated members. The population of The Gambia is 2.3 million people. There is now one Latter-day Saint per 96,578 people in The Gambia - a ratio comparable for the Church in India. Leadership from the Africa West Area visited The Gambia in January 2022. The Church has held sacrament meeting services in the home of a member of the Church in Banjul. Also in January, Church leaders conducted the first two temple recommend interviews for members of the Church living in The Gambia who planned to attend the temple for the first time the following month to receive the ordinances of the endowment. 

Like Senegal, the population of The Gambia is overwhelmingly Muslim (96.4%), albeit society is generally tolerant of religious freedom and religious minority groups. With the recent establishment of the Church in neighboring Senegal, Guinea, and Mali, prospects appear favorable for the creation of a mission headquartered in Dakar, Senegal within the near future to provide greater mission president oversight and larger amounts of resources allocated to this region of West Africa where there are no missions headquartered. Currently, countries in the area are assigned to several different missions such as the Cote d'Ivoire Yamoussoukro (Guinea and unofficially Burkina Faso) and Cote d'Ivoire Abidjan East (Mali). There are 90.8 million people who live in Burkina Faso, The Gambia, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Mali, and Senegal.

First District to be Created in Senegal; Church Establishment Beginning in The Gambia

On February 13th, the Church will organize its first district in the West African nation of Senegal. The creation of the new district will be just two weeks after the organization of the Saint-Louis Branch on January 30th, 2022, which is the third branch of the Church in the country. There is also one member group that operates in Mbour. The Church organized its first branch in Senegal in 2016. Senegal was assigned to a mission for the first time in late 2016/early 2017. Senegal was dedicated for missionary work in 2017 by Elder David A. Bednar. The first young, proselytizing full-time missionaries were assigned to Senegal and a second branch in Dakar opened in April 2018. At the time, there were approximately 60 active members in the entire country. A member group opened in Mbour in approximately June 2019. Mission leadership began to visit Saint-Louis in approximately March 2020. There are no recent membership data released by the Church for Senegal. The most recent membership statistical reported was at year-end 2018 when there were 108 members nationwide. Senegal currently pertains to the Cote d'Ivoire Abidjan West Mission. Senegal appears highly like to have its own mission organized in the foreseeable future given there is no nearby mission, a significant population of 16.1 million just within the country of Senegal, no significant restrictions on religious freedom, and opportunities for a mission in Dakar to better service other nearby nations with an emerging Church presence such as Mali and The Gambia. 

In regard to The Gambia, the first local members to receive the endowment will travel to the Accra Ghana Temple this month to receive these ordinances. Moreover, there are approximately one dozen individuals who may be baptized this month following a visit by area leadership to The Gambia to attend the inauguration of the president-elect. Sacrament meetings currently occur in a members' home in Banjul.

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.

LDS Outreach Efforts Beginning in The Gambia and Burkina Faso

The August 2018 Africa West Area Presidency message noted that for the first time area leaders have begun to examine prospects to establish the Church in two additional countries in West Africa where no LDS presence currently operates, namely The Gambia and Burkina Faso. Although information in the article is extremely limited, Elder Terence M. Vinson of the Seventy reported that during his service in the Africa West Area presidency between 2013 and 2018, he has met with members of the Church in Ghana, Nigeria, Côte d’Ivoire, Sierra Leone, Liberia, Togo, Benin, Senegal, Guinea, Mali, The Gambia, and Burkina Faso. These countries appear to be listed in the order in which he has visited them, with the last countries listed being the countries he has most recently visited for the first time (e.g. Senegal, Guinea, and Mali are listened in the order in which the first branch was organized). The Church has never reported an official presence in The Gambia or Burkina Faso even though both countries experience widespread religious freedom and no known legal barriers that prevent an LDS establishment. Member groups may operate in Ouagadougou and Banjul, although no confirmation is currently available. Burkina Faso presents some of the greatest opportunities for growth given a sizable Christian minority and the recent growth of other proselytism-focused Christian groups in the country. Both Burkina Faso and The Gambia are directly administered by the Africa West Area and by the Africa West Area Branch. Both countries appear most likely to be assigned to one of the three Ivorian missions. The first member from Burkina Faso to serve a full-time mission began his service in 2014.

There are 20 million people in Burkina Faso, and 2 million people in The Gambia.