"Oral Peoples Strategy: West Africa"

More than 150 years have passed since the first missionaries arrived in West Africa, yet 300-plus people groups in West Africa have not heard the name of Jesus and are not engaged by any mission organization. More than half of the 1,600-plus people groups who live in West Africa are unreached by the Gospel. Currently IMB personnel are engaging 52 people groups, representing 28 percent of the population. Although 39 percent of West Africans profess to be Christians, less than 6 percent of the total population is evangelical Christian. Slightly more than 50 percent of the population is Islamic. Another 10.5 percent of the population is entrenched in African traditional religion. The majority of West Africans are non-readers or oral learners. Even if the Bible is put into their language, many people will never be able to read the inspired words. The Oral Peoples Strategy consists of teams of young people focused on “Bible-less” language groups who give them the Scriptures through chronological Bible stories and by addressing human-needs issues. Oral Peoples Strategy teams working in the Western Gateway Cluster will spend their term of service living among the most unreached of people groups, conducting worldview evaluations, contextually living among the people groups, and sharing the Gospel in story form. Written Bible translation must continue, as Christians will always be a “people of the Book”; yet oral Bible translation must occur as well for the billions of people who will never be able to read this Book. Please pray for the effectiveness of the Oral Peoples Strategy.