Church Growth News

Missionaries officially assigned to Kosovo

A young missionary companionship and a senior missionary couple have been assigned to Pristina, Kosovo to begin formal missionary activity.  The Pristina Branch was organized earlier this year.  Currently LDS membership for Kosovo is estimated at less than 50.  Prospects for future growth are favorable although the delayed introduction of LDS missionary work in Kosovo may have resulted in missed opportunities when the population was most receptive.

New branch in Burundi

A second branch was organized in Bujumbura, Burundi less than six months after the organization of the first branch.  Convert baptisms continue to occur weekly and prospects appear favorable for additional branches to be organized within the near future.

New Stakes Organized in Peru and Utah

Peru

Today a new stake was organized in Peru.  The Casa Grande Peru Stake was organized from the Casa Grande Peru District which had seven branches in several small cities and towns northwest of Trujillo.  It is unclear how many branches became wards in the new stake.  There are now 95 stakes and 23 districts in Peru. 

Utah

A new stake was organized in Utah a week ago.  The Enoch Utah West Stake was organized from the Enoch Utah and the Cedar City Utah Canyon View Stakes.  There are now 557 stakes in Utah

New Stakes Organized in Brazil, DR Congo, and El Salvador; New District Organized in Vanuatu

Brazil

A new stake was organized in Rio de Janeiro.  The Rio de Janeiro Brazil Engenho de Dentro Stake was organized from the Rio de Janeiro Brazil and Rio de Janeiro Brazil Andaraí Stakes.  Compared to other Brazilian cities, few new stakes have been organized in Rio de Janeiro over the past decade as only two new stakes were organized between 2000 and 2010 (Rio de Janeiro Brazil Itaguaí Stake in 2005 and the Arsenal Brazil Stake in 2009).  Rio de Janeiro is one of the cities with the most stakes without a temple currently.  There are now ten LDS stakes in the Rio de Janeiro metropolitan area and 242 stakes in Brazil.  Congregational growth rates have been very slow so far in 2011 for Brazil compared to previous years.

Democratic Republic of the Congo

A new stake will be created in the interior of the DR Congo in Luputa this month.  The Luputa DR Congo Stake will be organized from the Luputa DR Congo District and will become the most recently organized district to become a stake in the LDS Church at present as the district was initially organized in 2006 with four branches.  At present the district has ten branches and it is unclear how many of the branches will become wards.  Last month another district in the country in Kananga became a stake with six wards and two branches.  There are now nine stakes in the DR Congo and the likelihood of additional stake organizations appears highly likely in the coming months and years.

El Salvador

The second LDS stake to be organized in over a decade in El Salvador was created a week ago.  The Sonzacate El Salvador Stake was organized from the Sonsonate El Salvador Stake and includes the following six wards and one branch: The Armenia, El Angel, Izalco, La Ponderosa, Nahuilingo, and Sonzacate Wards and the San Julian Branch.  The Sonsonate El Salvador Stake now has six wards.  There are now 18 stakes and two districts in El Salvador.  Also this summer the El Salvador San Salvador West Mission will be relocated to Santa Ana.

Vanuatu

The third LDS district in Vanuatu was recently organized.  The Malakula Vanuatu District was organized from the Luganville Vanuatu District and includes the following six branches on the island of Malakula: The Litslits, Lowni, Pinalum, Tulewei, Uripiv, and Wala Branches.  Prospects for the organization of additional districts is highly likely, especially for the islands of Ambae (five branches) and Tanna (four branches).

New Stakes Organized in Utah and Venezuela; New Districts Organized in Malaysia and Papua New Guinea

Utah

A new young single adult (YSA) stake has been organized in Utah.  The Alpine Utah YSA Stake was created for YSA units in the Alpine area and became Utah's 55th YSA stake.  There are now 556 stakes in Utah.

Venezuela

A new stake has been created in Venezuela.  The San Cristobal Venezuela Pirineos Stake was created from a division of the San Cristobal Venezuela Stake and includes five wards and one branch.  The San Cristobal Venezuela Stake at present also has five wards and one branch.  Congregational growth and the maturation of branches into wards has occurred rapidly in San Cristobal as a year ago there were only five wards and five branches in the stake.  Since the departure of North American missionaries in 2005 membership and congregational growth rates have plummeted in Venezuela but several new stakes have been organized recently as branches have become wards and a few new wards have been organized.  There are now 32 stakes and 8 branches in Venezuela.

Malaysia

A new district was organized in East Malaysia.  The Bintulu East Malaysia District was created from a division of the Miri East Malaysia District and includes three branches in Bintulu.  The district in Miri currently includes two branches and two groups.  It is unusual for a new district to be organized from a preexisting district and the original district retaining only two branches.  This may indicate that additional branches will be organized in Miri in the near future.  The growth of the number of LDS districts in East Malaysia has been rapid since 2000 as districts were organized in Kuching (2003), Miri (2008), and Sibu (2009).  There are no seven districts in East Malaysia and none appear close to becoming stakes within the near future.


Papua New Guinea

A new district has been organized in Suki, Papua New Guinea from a single branch that once pertained to the Daru Papua New Guinea District (which became a stake a couple Sundays ago).  Four additional branches were organized from the Suki Branch: The Kiru, Eniawa, Pukaduka, and Sapuka Branches.  Phenomenal, unprecedented congregational growth has occurred in the Western Province of Papua New Guinea since late 2010 when the Sogere Papua New Guinea District was organized from a single branch that has divided into nine branches at present.  There are now two stakes and nine districts in Papua New Guinea.

List of Countries With LDS Stakes and Date of First LDS Stake Creation

Two years ago I provided a list of countries around the world with LDS stakes and the year the first LDS stake was organized in each nation.  Since that time, four additional nations/territories have had their first LDS stakes organized so I wanted to update this list as well as provide some additional information.  The year the second LDS stake was organized in each country is provided for countries with two or more LDS stakes and the number of stakes and districts is provided in parentheses (first number is the number of stakes and the second number is the number of districts at present).  With countries with only one LDS stake, N/A is listed after the year the first stake was organized.

1847-1959

United States: 1834, 1834 (1,478 - 10)
Mexico: 1895, 1961 (222 - 49)
Canada: 1895, 1903 (47 - 4)
New Zealand: 1958, 1960 (25 - 3)

1960-1969

United Kingdom: 1960, 1961 (45 - 0)
Australia: 1960, 1960 (32 - 9)
Germany: 1961, 1961 (14 - 3)
Netherlands: 1961, 1978 (3 - 0)
Switzerland: 1961, 1981 (5 - 0)
Samoa: 1962, 1970 (16 - 0)
Brazil: 1966, 1968 (241 - 49)
Argentina: 1966, 1972 (70 - 37)
Guatemala: 1967, 1975 (39 - 19)
Uruguay: 1967, 1974 (16 - 4)
Tonga: 1968, 1970 (17 - 2)
American Samoa: 1969, 1980 (4 - 0)

1970-1979

Peru: 1970, 1974 (94 - 24)
Japan: 1970, 1972 (28 - 15)
South Africa: 1970, 1978 (12 - 4)
Chile: 1972, 1974 (70 - 23)
French Polynesia: 1972, 1983 (7 - 3)
Philippines: 1973, 1977 (81 - 85)
El Salvador: 1973, 1976 (17 - 2)
South Korea: 1973, 1977 (17 - 6)
Denmark: 1974, 1978 (2 - 0)
France: 1975, 1980 (9 - 1)
Sweden: 1975, 1977 (4 - 1)
Taiwan: 1976, 1981 (11 - 1)
China-Hong Kong: 1976, 1984 (4 - 1)
Colombia: 1977, 1978 (28 - 12)
Venezuela: 1977, 1979 (31 - 8)
Honduras: 1977, 1978 (21 - 7)
Costa Rica: 1977, 1978 (5 - 5)
Belgium: 1977, 1994 (2 - 0)
Finland: 1977, 1983 (2 - 2)
Norway: 1977, N/A (1 - 1)
Ecuador: 1978, 1979 (34 - 9)
Bolivia: 1979, 1979 (24 - 10)
Paraguay: 1979, 1980 (10 - 11)
Panama: 1979, 1986 (8 - 5)

1980-1989

Puerto Rico: 1980, 1982 (5 - 0)
Austria: 1980, 1997 (2 - 0)

Nicaragua: 1981, 2000 (9 - 6)Portugal: 1981, 1986 (6 - 4)
Italy: 1981, 1985 (7 - 5)
Spain: 1982, 1982 (10 - 5)
Fiji: 1983, 1995 (4 - 1)
Dominican Republic: 1986, 1988 (18 - 10)
Nigeria: 1988, 1990 (17 - 21)

1990-1999

Ghana: 1991, 1991 (8 - 5)
Papua New Guinea: 1995, 2011 (2 - 8)
Thailand: 1995, N/A (1 - 5)
Singapore: 1995, N/A (1 - 0)
Ireland: 1995, N/A (1 - 1)
Democratic Republic of Congo: 1996, 1997 (8 - 4)
Kiribati: 1996, 2007 (2 - 0)
Haiti: 1997, 2003 (2 - 2)
Ivory Coast: 1997, 2000 (4 - 1)
Zimbabwe: 1999, 2003 (4 - 1)

2000-2009

Madagascar: 2000, 2011 (2 - 2)
Kenya: 2001, N/A (1 - 2)
Republic of Congo: 2003, N/A (1 - 0)
Ukraine: 2004, N/A (1 - 1)
Hungary: 2006, N/A (1 - 2)
Mongolia: 2009, N/A (1 - 2)
Trinidad and Tobago: 2009, N/A (1 - 0)
Marshall Islands: 2009, N/A (1 - 1)

2010-present

Uganda: 2010, N/A (1 - 1)

Guam: 2010, N/A (1 - 0)

Indonesia: 2011, N/A (1 - 2)

Russia: 2011, N/A (1 - 12)

Districts Discontinued in France and Nicaragua

France

Formerly consisting of six branches, the Caen France District was discontinued and branches in the district were absorbed under the Paris France Stake (Caen, Le Havre, and Rouen Branches), Angers France Stake (Alencon Branch), and the France Paris Mission (Cherbourg and Coutances Branches).  Missionaries report that there had been efforts for the district to become a stake one day, but inadequate numbers of members, activity rates, and distance between congregations were persistent obstalces.  There are now nine stakes and one district in France.

Nicaragua

A district was discontinued in Nicaragua.  Comprising of three branches, the Rivas Nicaragua District was discontinued, the Moyogalpa Branch was closed, and the two remaining branches in Rivas now report directly to the Nicaragua Managua South Mission.  Currently no additional districts appear likely to be formed or closed in Nicaragua.  There are now nine stakes and six districts.

New Stakes Organized in Honduras, Papua New Guinea, the Philippines, and Venezuela

Honduras

The LDS Church organized its first new stake in Honduras since 1997.  The Tegucigalpa Honduras Loarque Stake was organized from the Tegucigalpa Honduras Toncontin Stake and includes the following five wards and two branches: The Jardines de Toncontin, Nuevo Loarque, Pedregal, Roble Oeste, and Tizatillo Wards and the Ojojona and Villeda Branches.  Congregational growth rates have rebounded in the past year in Honduras although they are far below membership growth rates, indicating ongoing retention and leadership challenges.  Progress has occurred in northern Honduras and several stakes appear close to splitting in the coming years as stakes in La Ceiba, Fesitrahn, and San Pedro El Progreso each have nine wards.  There are now 21 stakes and seven districts in Honduras.

Papua New Guinea

The Church organized its second stake in Papua New Guinea.  The Daru Papua New Guinea Stake includes the following six wards and one branch: The Daru 1st, Daru 2nd, Isumo, Tawoti, and Tawo'o Wards and the Suki Branch.  Five of the six wards are located on Daru Island, which is a small island off the mainland of New Guinea Island with approximately 13,000 inhabitants.  The recently organized Sogere Papua New Guinea District pertained to the Daru Papua New Guinea District prior its creation in late 2010 and church growth in the region has been steady and sustainable as indicated by increases in the number of congregations.  A further indication of strength in the newly organized stake in Daru is that one of the branches which became a ward - the Tawoti Ward - was organized as a branch not even six months ago.  At present no additional districts in Papua New Guinea appear close to becoming stakes as many districts have an inadequate number of total members and congregations, but additional districts appear likely to be organized in Kukipi and Angoram.  There are now two stakes and eight districts in Papua New Guinea.  

The Philippines

The Church created a new stake in the Philippines from a division of a preexisting stake for the first time in over a decade.  The Makati Philippines East Stake was organized from the Makati Philippines Stake and includes six wards: The Bonifacio 1st, 2nd, 3rd, 4th, 5th, and Makati 1st Wards.  A few stakes appear close to dividing in the near future in Butuan (10 wards, one branch), Cavite (10 wards and one branch), and Tuguegarao (9 wards, 4 branches).  There are several districts throughout the Philippines which appear close to becoming stakes.  There are now 81 stakes and 85 districts in the Philippines.

Venezuela

Another new stake was organized in Venezuela.  The Cagua Venezuela Stake was organized from the Maracay Venezuela Stake and includes the following seven wards: The Cagua, La Mora, La Victoria, San Juan de los Morros, Sorocaima, Turmero, and Villa de Cura Wards.  Of Venezuela's 31 LDS stakes, half have been organized since 2000.  Only a couple stakes appear likely to divide to create new stakes in the foreseeable future, the Ciudad Ojeda Venezuela and the San Cristobal Venezuela Stakes.  There are also eight districts functioning in the country, some of which appear close to becoming stakes.

Significant Developments for the LDS Church in Africa

Cities open for missionary work in Ethiopia

In an unprecedented move, LDS missionaries serving in Awasa, Ethiopia report that three additional cities in the Awasa area have had their first LDS congregations organized, doubling the number of cities in Ethiopia which receive LDS outreach from three to six.  LDS missionaries were assigned to Shashemene and a group was established a few weeks ago whereas groups were recently organized in the cities of Ch'iko and Wendo.  Missionaries report that dozens are currently investigating the church in these cities and that baptisms occur weekly.  Once newly organized groups in Shashemene, Ch'iko, and Wendo mature into independent branches prospects appear favorable for a district to be organized.  Awasa was opened to missionary work in 2010 and the Awasa Branch was organized in 2008 with less than two dozen members.  At present over 100 attend church meetings in the four cities in the region.  LDS missionaries have served in Addis Ababa and Debre Zeit for many years, where three branches and a group for Nuer-speakers operate.  There are now four branches and four groups in Ethiopia organized into one district.  There has been no recent word on whether an unofficial group continues to operate in Gambella.

First LDS branch outside of Angolan capital organized

The first independent LDS branch outside of Luanda was recently organized in the southern Angolan city of Lubango.  A group was organized in Lubango about a year ago and operated under the Mozambique Maputo Mission Branch.  The LDS Church in Angola also recently had its first district organized for the three branches in Luanda.  A group was also recently organized in the Viana, a suburb of Luanda.  There are now four branches and approximately four groups in Angola.  Prospects appear highly likely for Angola to become its own mission due to high rates of receptivity to the LDS Church, administrative demands on the Mozambique Maputo Mission, distance from Angola to Mozambique, and a large, relatively unreached population in Angola that has received very few LDS missionary resources.  The first LDS missionaries were assigned to Angola only a few years ago.

First LDS stake organized in the central interior of the Democratic Republic of the Congo


The Kananga Democratic Republic of Congo District recently became a stake, becoming the first stake in the country to be organized outside of Kinshasa and Lubumbashi.  The new stake includes five wards and three branches.  Enormous growth potential exists in the region and a third mission for the DR Congo based in Kananga, Mbuji-Mayi, or Luputa appears highly likely in the near future.  Missionaries report that missions based in Kinshasa and Lubumbashi are currently baptizing around 300 converts a month, with over 90% of converts being retained at least over the short term.  At this rate of growth, LDS membership may increase by between 7,000 and 9,000 in 2011 alone.  In late 2010, there were approximately 27,000 members in the DR Congo.

New branch organized in Uganda
A new branch was organized in the Jinja Uganda District named the Njeru Branch.  There are now six branches in the district.

New stake in Nigeria
The first new stake in Nigeria since 2007 was organized in Lagos.  The Lagos Nigeria South Stake includes five wards and two branches in the southern portion of the city.  The first stake in Lagos was organized in 1997 and a second stake was organized in 2005.  Several additional Nigerian stakes are close to splitting as all three stakes in Benin City have between 10 and 15 wards and the Port Harcourt Nigeria West Stake has 11 wards at present.  Nigeria has experienced recent growth in the number of districts as eight new districts were organized from late 2008 to mid-2010.  There are now 17 stakes and 21 districts in Nigeria.  Based on recent membership growth trends, LDS membership should number over 100,000 by mid-2011, becoming the first African country to have over 100,000 members.

Eight New YSA Stakes Organized in Utah; Three Stakes Discontinued in Utah and One Stake Discontinued in California

Eight new YSA stakes in Utah

The LDS Church organized eight new YSA stakes on May 1st in the Salt Lake area in an effort to simplify organizational administration for young single adults in the region.  New stakes are headquartered in Bountiful, Draper, Layton, Murray, Sandy, Syracuse, Taylorsville, and West Jordan.  Many of the congregations which now pertain to these stakes were assigned to ordinary "family" stakes in the region and as many as three dozen wards and branches were consolidated.  At present, none of the eight new stakes have any YSA branches as a result of the reorganization and restructuring of congregations.  The number of YSA wards in the eight new stakes varies from as few as seven to as many as twelve. 

Three stakes discontinued in Utah

Three stakes were discontinued in Utah.  Originally organized in 1981, the Blanding Utah West Stake included only four wards and three branches and was consolidated with the Blanding Utah Stake (organized in 1978), which had five wards and two branches.  There are now nine wards and five branches in the Blanding Utah Stake.

Organized in 1978, the Salt Lake Mount Olympus North Stake had five wards and was discontinued and consolidated with the Salt Lake Mount Olympus Stake which also had five wards.  There were six wards in the Salt Lake Mount Olympus Stake until the YSA ward was placed under a YSA stake recently.  The number of LDS congregations in both stakes was unchanged from as early as 2004.  There are now ten wards in the Salt Lake Mount Olympus Stake. 

Organized in 1965, the Taylorsville Utah West Stake had five wards and was discontinued and consolidated with the Taylorsville Utah North Central and the Taylorsville Utah South Stakes.  There were six wards in the former Taylorsville Utah West Stake between 2004 and 2007 until one ward was discontinued in 2007.  The recent creation of the Taylorsville Utah YSA Stake removed a YSA ward part of the stake, resulting in the Taylorsville Utah West Stake possessing only four wards.   

Despite the LDS Church in Utah operating 555 stakes and experiencing significant population shifts from Salt Lake City to other areas, only eight stakes were discontinued in the past decade whereas approximately 80 were created.  Stakes discontinued in the past decade include the Kearns Utah North [2002], Salt Lake Eagle Gate [2003], Ogden Utah Canyon View [2004], Ogden Utah Mount Ogden [2004], Salt Lake University 4th [2004], Blanding Utah West [2011], Salt Lake Mount Olympus North [2011], and Taylorsville Utah West [2011].  Congregational growth has been stagnant in the Salt Lake stakes and in many surrounding communities and few wards and branches have been organized or discontinued.  Only a handful of additional stakes appear likely to consolidate in the coming years in Salt Lake unless additional congregations are consolidated.  Although there has been no announced plans, prospects appear high for the establishment of Spanish-speaking stakes in the area.  The organization of Spanish-speaking stakes would likely prompt additional stake consolidations as Spanish units are reorganized in new stakes.

Stake discontinued in California

Organized in 1992 and recently consisting of nine wards, the Escondido California South Stake was discontinued and consolidated with the Escondido California Stake which had only five wards.  The realigned Escondido California Stake now has 13 wards; a large number for stake and which would generally prompt its division.  Additional congregations may be consolidated in the near future because of the large number of units in the stake.  California has experienced the largest number of LDS stake closures over the past two decades of any state (15) primarily due to many active members moving to other areas of the stake or outside of the state and convert retention and member activity challenges. 

New Stakes Organized in Venezuela and Tahiti; New District Organized in Kenya

Venezuela

A new stake was recently organized in Venezuela.  The Cumana Venezuela Stake was organized from the Puerto La Cruz Venezuela Stake and includes the four wards in the city of Cumana (Ayacucho, Campeche, Cumana, and Sucre Wards), the Cumanacoa Ward, and the Mariguitar Ward.  Additional stakes may be organized in the near future in other areas of Venezuela, such as Maracay.  There are now 30 stakes in Venezuela.

Tahiti

A new stake was organized in Tahiti.  The Punaauia Tahiti Stake was organized from the Raromatai and the Paea Tahiti Stakes and includes the following eight wards: Anau, Manutahi, Matatia, Maupiti, Outumaoro, Punaruu, Punavai Nui, and Vaitape.  There are now seven stakes in French Polynesia.  

Kenya

A new district was organized in western Kenya.  The Eldoret Kenya District includes the Eldoret, Huruma, Kitale, Langas, Misikhu, Naitiri, Sikhendu, and Sosiani Branches.  There are now two districts and one stake in Kenya.