The Kotokoli of Benin

The Kotokoli of Benin, numbering approximately 30,000 people, are Unengaged and Unreached. They are an ethnic group of West Africa indigenous to the countries of Togo and Ghana. They mostly adhere to Sunni Islam and Tem is their primary language.

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

Fast Facts:

Affinity Group: Sub-Saharan African Peoples
Country: Benin
People Cluster: Gur
Primary Language(s): Tem (kdh)
Primary Religion(s): Sunni Islam
Population: 30,000
Strategic Progress Index (SPI): Unengaged and Unreached
Global Status of Evangelical Christianity (GSEC): Less than 2% Evangelical, No Recent CP Activity
People Group ID: PG012334
View on Joshua Project

Pray for the Kotokoli of Benin

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: Sunni Islam
Religious Affiliation: Islam

100%
%
Sunni Islam Adherents

Dig Deeper (Language):

Primary Language: Tem
Language Family: Atlantic-Congo

100%
%
Tem Speakers

Media Resources in Tem:

Films:
Title Link
JESUS View Film
Magdalena View Film

2 films

Bible Resources in Tem:

Bible Name (Translation) Video Audio Text
2019 Association Bible Tem ✓

1 entry

Or check out the Tem bible at Bible.com

Linked from YouVersion

Explore Lostness and Next Steps

Unengaged and Unreached

Strategic Priority Index (SPI): Unengaged and Unreached (SPI: 0), 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.
Lostness Priority Index (LPI): Frontier Unreached People Group, (LPI: 0), < 0.1% Evangelical.
Global Status of Evangelical Christianity (GSEC): Less than 2% Evangelical, No Recent CP Activity (GSEC: 1), this people group is less than 2% evangelical, some evangelical resources are available, but there has been no active church planting among them within the past two years

Next steps for the Kotokoli:
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

Pray specifically for the Kotokoli of Benin

For his invisible attributes, namely, his eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly perceived, ever since the creation of the world, in the things that have been made. So they are without excuse.
readRomans 1:20

As God's creation declares His glory, pray that multitudes who don't know Him will see the works of His hands and desire to know more about the Creator.

Behold, you shall call a nation that you do not know, and a nation that did not know you shall run to you, because of the LORD your God, and of the Holy One of Israel, for he has glorified you.
readIsaiah 55:5

Pray that those who do not know God will access the gospel, run to Him, and discover that He is the one their souls have been longing for.

And Jesus came and said to them, "All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age."
readMatthew 28:18-20

Pray that as people place their faith in Christ, they will have confidence because Jesus has all authority and is with them as they make disciples and teach others about Him.

And God has appointed in the church first apostles, second prophets, third teachers, then miracles, then gifts of healing, helping, administrating, and various kinds of tongues.
read2 Corinthians 12:28

Ask God to raise up believers who will faithfully proclaim the good news and equip others to do the same.

Kotokoli Across Countries (ROP3 - 105270) reported in the following countries:

Strategic Progress Index

All

3 people groups

Photo People Group ID Name Country Population ▲ Strategic Progress Index Language Religion
Kotokoli Kotokoli Benin 30,000 Unengaged and Unreached Tem Sunni Islam
Kotokoli Kotokoli Ghana 98,000 Unengaged and Unreached Tem Folk Islam
Kotokoli Kotokoli Togo 537,000 Unengaged and Unreached Tem Folk 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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