The Kong Jula of Cote d’Ivoire

The Kong Jula of Cote d’Ivoire, numbering approximately 3,285,000 people, are Engaged yet Unreached. They are a Mande ethnic group indigenous to several West African countries. They mostly adhere to Folk Islam and Dyula is their primary language.

Photo by Google. (2026). Image generated by Gemini 2.5 Flash: Jula, Kong

Fast Facts:

Affinity Group: Sub-Saharan African Peoples
Country: Cote d’Ivoire
People Cluster: Malinke-Jula
Primary Language(s): Dyula (dyu)
Primary Religion(s): Folk Islam
Population: 3,285,000
Strategic Progress Index (SPI): Engaged yet Unreached
Global Status of Evangelical Christianity (GSEC): Less than 2% Evangelical, No Recent CP Activity
People Group ID: PG013091
View on Joshua Project

Pray for the Kong Jula of Cote d’Ivoire

Join others around the world in praying for the lost to be saved, the gospel to advance, the global Church to grow, and for laborers to be sent out and sustained in the harvest.

Dig Deeper (Religion):

Primary Religion: Folk Islam
Religious Affiliation: Islam

94%
%
Folk Islam Adherents

Dig Deeper (Language):

Primary Language: Dyula
Language Family: Mande

100%
%
Jula Speakers

Media Resources in Dyula:

Films:
TitleLink
JESUSView Film
MagdalenaView Film

2 films

Bible Resources in Dyula:

Bible Name (Translation)VideoAudioText
1996 Bible Society of Burkina Faso✓✓✓
2013 Wycliffe Bible Translators, Inc.✓✓✓

2 entries

Or check out the Dyula bible at Bible.com

Linked from YouVersion

SPI: Unreached yet Engaged

The Kong Jula are Engaged yet Unreached, which means there are less than 2% evangelical Christian populations but there are sustained efforts at establishing self-sustaining churches consistent with evangelical faith and practice.

Next steps for the Kong Jula:
Continue prayer and fasting for this group
Continue gospel seed sowing and church planting among this group
Begin training up local leaders to lead and develop strategies to reach their own people

Pray specifically for the Kong Jula of Cote d’Ivoire

Be still, and know that I am God. I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth!
readPsalm 46:10

Pray that those who do not yet worship Jesus will be still and know that He is God, that He will be exalted among them and in all the earth.

“I was ready to be sought by those who did not ask for me; I was ready to be found by those who did not seek me. I said, ‘Here I am, here I am,’ to a nation that was not called by my name."
readIsaiah 65:1

Pray that the lost will be found by God, even when they are not seeking Him. Pray that He will reveal Himself to them in a way they cannot ignore and that they will respond in faith.

But recall the former days when, after you were enlightened, you endured a hard struggle with sufferings, sometimes being publicly exposed to reproach and affliction, and sometimes being partners with those so treated.
readHebrews 10:32-33

Pray that as people place their faith in Christ, they will remember the day of their salvation and persevere in their faith despite hardships and suffering.

Go on up to a high mountain, O Zion, herald of good news; lift up your voice with strength, O Jerusalem, herald of good news; lift it up, fear not; say to the cities of Judah, "Behold your God!"
readIsaiah 40:9

Pray for God to send and sustain believers to go and herald the good news to the lost here.

Jula Across Countries (ROP3 - 104323) reported in the following countries:

Strategic Progress Index
All

5 people groups

PhotoPeople Group IDNameCountryPopulation ▲Strategic Progress IndexLanguageReligion
JulaJulaUnited States5,700Engaged yet UnreachedDyulaSunni Islam
JulaJulaGhana35,500Engaged yet UnreachedDyulaFolk Islam
JulaJulaMali127,000Unengaged and UnreachedDyulaFolk Islam
JulaJulaBurkina Faso2,750,000Unengaged and UnreachedDyulaFolk Islam
Kong JulaKong JulaCote d’Ivoire3,285,000Engaged yet UnreachedDyulaFolk Islam

To download a comprehensive people group list in spreadsheet form, visit our Research Data page.

Peoplegroups.org relies on updates from the field and other organizations for much of our data, so if you have any updates, please contact us. We use various international naming standards. For a list of these standards and fields, visit our Data Standards section.

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