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The Kafa of Ethiopia

The Kafa of Ethiopia, numbering approximately 1,430,000 people, are Engaged yet Unreached. They are an ethnic group indigenous to the forested highlands of southwestern Ethiopia, primarily in the Kaffa Zone around the town of Bonga. They are best known historically as the people of the former Kingdom of Kaffa. They mostly adhere to Tewahedo Orthodox Christianity and Kafa is their primary language.

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

Fast Facts:

Affinity Group: Horn of Africa Peoples
Country: Ethiopia
People Cluster: Omotic
Primary Language(s): Kafa (kbr)
Primary Religion(s): Tewahedo Orthodox Christianity
Population: 1,430,000
Strategic Progress Index (SPI): Engaged yet Unreached
Global Status of Evangelical Christianity (GSEC): Less than 2% Evangelical, No Recent CP Activity
People Group ID: PG011601
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Pray for the Kafa of Ethiopia

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: Tewahedo Orthodox Christianity
Religious Affiliation: Christianity

45%
%
Tewahedo Orthodox Christi… Adherents

Dig Deeper (Language):

Primary Language: Kafa
Language Family: Ta-Ne-Omotic

94%
%
Kafa Speakers

Media Resources in Kafa:

Films:
TitleLink
JESUSView Film

1 film

Provided by the Jesus Film Project

View all resources

Bible Resources in Kafa:

Bible Name (Translation)VideoAudioText
2010 SIM✓✓✓

1 entry

Provided by Faith Comes by Hearing

Or check out the Kafa bible at Bible.com

Linked from YouVersion

View all resources

SPI: Unreached yet Engaged

The Kafa 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 Kafa:
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 Kafa of Ethiopia

The LORD has heard my plea; the LORD accepts my prayer.
readPsalm 6:9

Pray that lost people will hear the gospel and place their faith in Christ, knowing that He hears their plea and accepts their prayer.

And what you have heard from me in the presence of many witnesses entrust to faithful men, who will be able to teach others also.
read2 Timothy 2:2

Pray that the lost will come to faith in Christ and be discipled in the truth of the gospel, becoming faithful followers of Jesus who, in turn, make disciples themselves.

Those who look to him are radiant, and their faces shall never be ashamed.
readPsalm 34:5

Pray that as people place their faith in Christ, they will see themselves as God sees them, with radiant faces and hearts that have been cleansed of all shame.

The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it.
readJohn 1:5

Pray that when discouraging days come, those who cross cultures for the sake of the gospel will be comforted as they remember that the light of Christ is stronger than the darkness that surrounds them.

Kafa Across Countries (ROP3 - 104390) reported in the following countries:

Strategic Progress Index
All

1 people group

PhotoPeople Group IDNameCountryPopulationStrategic Progress Index ▼LanguageReligion
KafaPG011601KafaEthiopia1,430,000Engaged yet UnreachedKafaTewahedo Orthodox Christianity

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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