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The Mabas of Cameroon

The Mabas of Cameroon, numbering approximately 16,500 people, are Engaged yet Unreached. They are an Afro-Asiatic people centered on Mabas village near the Nigerian border in Cameroon's Far North Region, linked through shared Gudur tradition to related Vizik and Vemgo communities across the frontier. They mostly adhere to Sunni Islam and Vemgo-Mabas is their primary language.

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

Fast Facts:

Affinity Group: Sub-Saharan African Peoples
Country: Cameroon
People Cluster: Chadic
Primary Language(s): Vemgo-Mabas (vem)
Primary Religion(s): Sunni Islam
Population: 16,500
Strategic Progress Index (SPI): Engaged yet Unreached
Global Status of Evangelical Christianity (GSEC): Less than 2% Evangelical, No Recent CP Activity
People Group ID: PG012667
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Pray for the Mabas 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: Sunni Islam
Religious Affiliation: Islam

55%
%
Sunni Islam Adherents

Dig Deeper (Language):

Primary Language: Vemgo-Mabas
Language Family: Afro-Asiatic

100%
%
Vemgo-Mabas Speakers

Media Resources in Vemgo-Mabas:

Films:

No film resources are listed for this language.

Provided by the Jesus Film Project

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Bible Resources in Vemgo-Mabas:

No Bible resources are listed for this language.

Provided by Faith Comes by Hearing

Or check out the Vemgo-Mabas bible at Bible.com

Linked from YouVersion

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SPI: Unreached yet Engaged

The Mabas 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 Mabas:
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 Mabas of Cameroon

For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.
readRomans 3:23

Pray that those who live in fear, guilt and discontentment because of sin will see their need for change, hear, and receive the good news of freedom from sin through Christ.

Your kingdom come, your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven.
readMatthew 6:10

Pray that God's will be done on earth as it is in heaven, and that people will seek His kingdom and righteousness above all else, trusting in His provision.

He will wipe away every tear from their eyes, and death shall be no more, neither shall there be mourning, nor crying, nor pain anymore, for the former things have passed away.
readRevelation 21:4

Pray that as people place their faith in Christ and walk through challenges, they will find comfort in God's promise of a beautiful future when there is no pain or suffering for those who belong to Christ.

And he said to them, “Truly, I say to you, there is no one who has left house or wife or brothers or parents or children, for the sake of the kingdom of God, who will not receive many times more in this time, and in the age to come eternal life.”
readLuke 18:29-30

Pray that God will raise up people to go and share the gospel and help them trust His promise that anyone who has left those they treasure for the sake of the kingdom of God will receive many times more in this life and in the life to come.

Vemgo-Mabas Across Countries (ROP3 - 105952) reported in the following countries:

Strategic Progress Index
All

2 people groups

PhotoPeople Group IDNameCountryPopulation ▼Strategic Progress IndexLanguageReligion
MaabasPG013976MaabasNigeria22,000Engaged yet UnreachedVemgo-MabasAnimism
MabasPG012667MabasCameroon16,500Engaged yet UnreachedVemgo-MabasSunni 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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