The Wala of Burkina Faso

The Wala of Burkina Faso, numbering approximately 43,500 people, are Engaged yet Unreached. They are described as an ethnolinguistic subgroup of the Dagaaba people in Burkina Faso They are an Indigenous people, with Dagaaba (Dagaari) as their ethnic/kinship group and are in the Gur people cluster of the Sub-Saharan African Peoples. Their primary religion is Folk Islam. They primarily speak Dagaari Dioula.

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

Fast Facts*:

Affinity Group: Sub-Saharan African Peoples
Country: Burkina Faso
People Cluster: Gur
Primary Language(s): Dagaari Dioula (dgd)
Primary Religion(s): Folk Islam
Population: 43,500
Strategic Progress Index (SPI): Engaged yet Unreached
Global Status of Evangelical Christianity (GSEC): Less than 2% Evangelical, No Recent CP Activity
People Group ID: PG012458
View on Joshua Project

Pray for the Wala of Burkina Faso

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

100%
%
Folk Islam Adherents

Dig Deeper (Language):

Primary Language: Dagaari Dioula
Language Family: Atlantic-Congo

99%
%
Dagaari Dioula Speakers

Media Resources in Dagaari Dioula:

Films:

No film resources are listed for this language.

Bible Resources in Dagaari Dioula:

1 entry

Or check out the Dagaari Dioula bible at Bible.com

Linked from YouVersion

SPI: Unreached yet Engaged

The Wala 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 Wala:
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 Wala of Burkina Faso

I love those who love me, and those who seek me diligently find me.
readProverbs 8:17

As many search for hope, pray they will discover materials that will lead them to Jesus and explain the gospel in a way they will resonate with.

And this gospel of the kingdom will be proclaimed throughout the whole world as a testimony to all nations, and then the end will come.
readMatthew 24:14

Pray that the gospel of God's kingdom will reach more people and that they will respond in faith, becoming disciples of Jesus Christ.

For though I am free from all, I have made myself a servant to all, that I might win more of them.
read1 Corinthians 9:19

Pray that as people place their faith in Christ, they will have hearts that want to serve the lost around them so that many might come to faith in Jesus.

Oh give thanks to the LORD; call upon his name; make known his deeds among the peoples!
readPsalm 105:1

Pray that many among them will call on the name of Jesus, develop a heart for the nations, and go to places where the gospel has not yet been received.

Dagaari Dioula, Wala Across Countries (ROP3 - 102367) reported in the following countries:

Strategic Progress Index
All

1 people group

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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