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The Yerwa Kanuri of Cameroon

The Yerwa Kanuri of Cameroon, numbering approximately 192,000 people, are Engaged yet Unreached. They are a Kanuri ethnic group indigenous to the Borno and Yobe states of northeastern Nigeria. They mostly adhere to Folk Islam and Central Kanuri is their primary language.

Photo by Google. (2026). Image generated by Gemini 2.5 Flash: Yerwa Kanuri

Fast Facts:

Affinity Group: Sub-Saharan African Peoples
Country: Cameroon
People Cluster: Kanuri-Saharan
Primary Language(s): Central Kanuri (knc)
Primary Religion(s): Folk Islam
Population: 192,000
Strategic Progress Index (SPI): Engaged yet Unreached
Global Status of Evangelical Christianity (GSEC): Less than 2% Evangelical, No Recent CP Activity
People Group ID: PG012815
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Pray for the Yerwa Kanuri of Cameroon

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.

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Dig Deeper (Religion):

Primary Religion: Folk Islam
Religious Affiliation: Islam

99%
%
Folk Islam Adherents

Dig Deeper (Language):

Primary Language: Central Kanuri
Language Family: Saharan

100%
%
Kanuri, Yerwa Speakers

Media Resources in Central Kanuri:

Films:
TitleLink
JESUSView Film

1 film

Provided by the Jesus Film Project

View all resources

Bible Resources in Central Kanuri:

Bible Name (Translation)VideoAudioText
1997 Bible Society of Nigeria✓

1 entry

Provided by Faith Comes by Hearing

Or check out the Central Kanuri bible at Bible.com

Linked from YouVersion

View all resources

SPI: Unreached yet Engaged

The Yerwa Kanuri 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 Yerwa Kanuri:
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 Yerwa Kanuri of Cameroon

Sing for joy, O heavens, and exult, O earth; break forth, O mountains, into singing! For the LORD has comforted his people and will have compassion on his afflicted.
readIsaiah 49:13

Thank the Lord for the people here and ask that His gospel will flow through this land to bring hope to those who are afflicted by the guilt of sin.

Jesus said to him, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me."
readJohn 14:6

Pray that those who are searching for a way to God and desiring truth will encounter the good news of eternal life and accept it.

The LORD bless you and keep you.
readNumbers 6:24

Pray that as people place their faith in Christ, they will be blessed with God's grace, trusting that He will never abandon them.

Behold, I am doing a new thing; now it springs forth, do you not perceive it? I will make a way in the wilderness and rivers in the desert.
readIsaiah 43:19

Praise the God who is able to make a way forward, even when it seems impossible. Ask Him to do a new thing among this people group specifically and among the nations, raising up believers to go and share the gospel with individuals and places where it has not flourished before.

Kanuri, Yerwa Across Countries (ROP3 - 104605) reported in the following countries:

Strategic Progress Index
All

5 people groups

PhotoPeople Group IDNameCountryPopulation ▼Strategic Progress IndexLanguageReligion
Yerwa KanuriPG014188Yerwa KanuriNigeria8,770,000Engaged yet UnreachedCentral KanuriFolk Islam
KanuriPG012059KanuriSudan498,000Unengaged and UnreachedCentral KanuriSunni Islam
Yerwa KanuriPG011469Yerwa KanuriChad293,000Engaged yet UnreachedCentral KanuriFolk Islam
Yerwa KanuriPG013614Yerwa KanuriNiger239,000Unengaged and UnreachedCentral KanuriFolk Islam
Yerwa KanuriPG012815Yerwa KanuriCameroon192,000Engaged yet UnreachedCentral KanuriFolk 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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