The Kari of Central African Republic

The Kari of Central African Republic, numbering approximately 179,000 people, are Engaged yet Unreached. They are a southern Mbum people of the mountains around Bocaranga in the Central African Republic's Ouham-Pende prefecture, whose ancestors fled Fulani raids on the Adamawa Plateau in the early 1800s to settle this borderland with Cameroon. They mostly adhere to Ethnoreligion and Kare (Central African Republic) is their primary language.

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

Fast Facts:

Affinity Group: Sub-Saharan African Peoples
Country: Central African Republic
People Cluster: Adamawa-Ubangi
Primary Language(s): Kare (Central African Republic) (kbn)
Primary Religion(s): Ethnoreligion
Population: 179,000
Strategic Progress Index (SPI): Engaged yet Unreached
Global Status of Evangelical Christianity (GSEC): Less than 2% Evangelical, No Recent CP Activity
People Group ID: PG012879
View on Joshua Project

Pray for the Kari of Central African Republic

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Dig Deeper (Religion):

Primary Religion: Ethnoreligion
Religious Affiliation: Ethnoreligion

—
%
Ethnoreligion Adherents

Dig Deeper (Language):

Primary Language: Kare (Central African Republic)
Language Family: Atlantic-Congo

100%
%
Kare (Central African Republic) Speakers

Media Resources in Kare (Central African Republic):

Films:
TitleLink
JESUSView Film

1 film

Bible Resources in Kare (Central African Republic):

No Bible resources are listed for this language.

Or check out the Kare (Central African Republic) bible at Bible.com

Linked from YouVersion

SPI: Unreached yet Engaged

The Kari 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 Kari:
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 Kari of Central African Republic

And this is the judgment: the light has come into the world, and people loved the darkness rather than the light because their works were evil.
readJohn 3:19

Pray that God will have mercy on those who love the darkness they are walking in and turn from their sin to faith in Christ.

The steadfast love of the LORD never ceases; his mercies never come to an end; they are new every morning; great is your faithfulness.
readLamentations 3:23-23

Pray that they will have hope in the Lord, knowing that His compassions never fails and that His mercies are new every morning.

Praying at all times in the Spirit, with all prayer and supplication. To that end, keep alert with all perseverance, making supplication for all the saints.
readEphesians 6:18

Pray that as people place their faith in Christ, they will be alert and persistent in prayer for all believers, offering their requests with thanksgiving.

Finally, be strong in the Lord and in the strength of his might.
readEphesians 6:10

Ask God to strengthen believers with His mighty power so that as they cross cultures to share the gospel, they will stand firm against the schemes of the enemy.

Kari Across Countries (ROP3 - 104664) reported in the following countries:

Strategic Progress Index
All

2 people groups

To download a comprehensive people group list in spreadsheet form, visit our Research Data page.

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