Download the People Group List (16 languages .csv)

Amharic - አማርኛ | Arabic - عربي
Bengali - বাংলা | Chinese (Simplified) - 中文（简体）
Chinese (Traditional) - 中文（繁體) | French - Français
German - Deutsch | Gujarati - ગુજરાતી
Hindi - हिन्दी | Indonesian - Bahasa Indonesia
Korean - 한국어 | Nepali - नेपाली
Portugese - Português | Russian - Русский
Spanish - Espanol | Tagalong / Filipino
Be sure to use the data import function in your favorite app for working with data.
If you'd like to help improve these translations, Contact Us.

PEOPLE GROUP PROFILE

The Jola-Fonyi of The Gambia

The Jola-Fonyi of The Gambia, numbering approximately 145,000 people, are Engaged yet Unreached. They are an ethnic group indigenous to the Lower Casamance region of Senegal and neighboring parts of the Gambia and can also be known as Jola-Fonyi, Joola Fooni. They are an Indigenous people, in the Atlantic-Jola people cluster of the Sub-Saharan African affinity bloc. Their primary religion is Islam - Folk. They primarily speak Jola-Fonyi.

Jola in Senegal photo
Photo courtesy of Joshua Project. Photo Source: Link Up Africa

Fast Facts:

Affinity Group: Sub-saharan Africa Peoples
Country: The Gambia
People Cluster: Atlantic-Jola
Primary Language(s): Jola-Fonyi (dyo)
Primary Religion(s): Islam - Folk
Population: 145,000
Strategic Progress Index (SPI): Engaged yet Unreached
Global Status of Evangelical Christianity (GSEC): Less than 2% Evangelical, No Active CP Activity
People Group ID: PG042193
View on Joshua Project

Prayer Card
Submit Updates

Pray for the Jola-Fonyi of The Gambia

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.

Pray Now!
Download Prayer Guide

Dig Deeper (Religion):

Primary Religion: Islam - Folk
Religious Affiliation: Islam

%
Islam - Folk Adherents

Dig Deeper (Language):

Primary Language: Jola-Fonyi
Language Family: Niger-Congo

%
Jola-Fonyi Speakers

Media Resources in Jola-Fonyi:

Films:

Provided by the Jesus Film Project

View all resources

Bible Resources in Jola-Fonyi:

Provided by Faith Comes by Hearing

Or check out the Jola-Fonyi bible resources at Bible.com

Linked from YouVersion

View all resources

Next steps for the Jola-Fonyi

The Jola-Fonyi are Unengaged and Unreached, which means there are less than 2% evangelical Christian populations among which there are no known efforts focused on establishing self-sustaining churches consistent with evangelical faith and practice.

Begin signifcant prayer and fasting for this group
Send cross-cultural teams to discover and research this people group
Begin gospel seed sowing and church planting among this group

Next steps for the Jola-Fonyi

The Jola-Fonyi 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.

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

Next steps for the Jola-Fonyi

The Jola-Fonyi are No Longer Unreached, which means there are more than 2% evangelical Christian populations and there are churches consistent with evangelical faith and practice. There is still more to be done among them.

Empower local believers to begin praying for their own people
Continue gospel seed sowing and church planting among this group
Encourage local leaders to being leading church planting strategy and looking for Unreached and Unengaged groups nearby

Pray specifically for the Jola-Fonyi of The Gambia

For at one time you were darkness, but now you are light in the Lord. Walk as children of light.
readEphesians 5:8

Pray that those who are lost will turn from the darkness they are walking in and embrace the light, becoming children of light who bear fruit in every good work.

For if while we were enemies we were reconciled to God by the death of his Son, much more, now that we are reconciled, shall we be saved by his life.
readRomans 5:10

Pray that God will remove obstacles to the gospel so that many will see the hope He offers through the death, burial, and resurrection of His Son, and be transformed from being enemies to being His friends.

Behold, how good and pleasant it is when brothers dwell in unity!
readPsalm 133:1

Pray that as people place their faith in Christ, they will be unified and love one another as God loves them.

The steps of a man are established by the LORD, when he delights in his way.
readPsalm 37:23

Pray that believers from near and far will serve here and trust in the Lord's timing as He establishes their steps.

Jola-Fonyi (ROP3 - 102625) reported in the following countries:

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 Definitions page.

Scroll to Top