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The Gaanda of Nigeria

The Gaanda of Nigeria, numbering approximately 97,000 people, are Engaged yet Unreached. They are a Chadic-speaking people of Nigeria's upper Gongola River valley, comprising four subgroups (Ga'anda proper, Gabun, Boga, and Dingai) and known for a multi-stage Hleeta body-scarification tradition marking a woman's advancing eligibility for marriage. They mostly adhere to Ethnoreligion and Ga'anda is their primary language.

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

Fast Facts:

Affinity Group: Sub-Saharan African Peoples
Country: Nigeria
People Cluster: Chadic
Primary Language(s): Ga'anda (gqa)
Primary Religion(s): Ethnoreligion
Population: 97,000
Strategic Progress Index (SPI): Engaged yet Unreached
Global Status of Evangelical Christianity (GSEC): Less than 2% Evangelical, No Recent CP Activity
People Group ID: PG013786
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Pray for the Gaanda of Nigeria

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.

Pray Now!
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Dig Deeper (Religion):

Primary Religion: Ethnoreligion
Religious Affiliation: Ethnoreligion

83%
%
Ethnoreligion Adherents

Dig Deeper (Language):

Primary Language: Ga'anda
Language Family: Afro-Asiatic

100%
%
Ga’anda Speakers

Media Resources in Ga'anda:

Films:
TitleLink
JESUSView Film

1 film

Provided by the Jesus Film Project

View all resources

Bible Resources in Ga'anda:

No Bible resources are listed for this language.

Provided by Faith Comes by Hearing

Or check out the Ga'anda bible at Bible.com

Linked from YouVersion

View all resources

SPI: Unreached yet Engaged

The Gaanda 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 Gaanda:
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 Gaanda of Nigeria

But he said, "What is impossible with man is possible with God."
readLuke 18:27

Praise God that He is the God of impossible things and that He is able to save even those who seem beyond hope.

Declare his glory among the nations, his marvelous works among all the peoples!
readPsalm 96:3

Pray for people to hear and believe the good news of Jesus and joyfully share it with their family and friends.

And these words that I command you today shall be on your heart. You shall teach them diligently to your children, and shall talk of them when you sit in your house, and when you walk by the way, and when you lie down, and when you rise.
readDeuteronomy 6:6-7

Pray that as people place their faith in Christ, they will hide God's Word in their hearts, let it shape their conversations and daily lives, and pass on their faith to the next generation.

Beloved, I pray that all may go well with you and that you may be in good health, as it goes well with your soul.
read3 John 1:2

Ask God to grant protection and good health — both physical and spiritual — to those He sends cross-culturally to share the gospel.

Ga'anda Across Countries (ROP3 - 103099) reported in the following countries:

Strategic Progress Index
All

1 people group

PhotoPeople Group ID ▲NameCountryPopulationStrategic Progress IndexLanguageReligion
GaandaPG013786GaandaNigeria97,000Engaged yet UnreachedGa'andaEthnoreligion

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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