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The Maabas of Nigeria

The Maabas of Nigeria, numbering approximately 22,000 people, are Engaged yet Unreached. They are an ethnolinguistic community of Nigeria. They mostly adhere to Animism and Vemgo-Mabas is their primary language.

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

Fast Facts:

Affinity Group: Sub-Saharan African Peoples
Country: Nigeria
People Cluster: Chadic
Primary Language(s): Vemgo-Mabas (vem)
Primary Religion(s): Animism
Population: 22,000
Strategic Progress Index (SPI): Engaged yet Unreached
Global Status of Evangelical Christianity (GSEC): Less than 2% Evangelical, No Recent CP Activity
People Group ID: PG013976
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Pray for the Maabas 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.

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Dig Deeper (Religion):

Primary Religion: Animism
Religious Affiliation: Ethnoreligion

75%
%
Animism 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

View all resources

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

View all resources

SPI: Unreached yet Engaged

The Maabas 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 Maabas:
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 Maabas of Nigeria

He went to him and bound up his wounds, pouring on oil and wine. Then he set him on his own animal and brought him to an inn and took care of him
readLuke 10:34

Pray that the lost among them will experience the kind of compassion Jesus taught His followers to show others, and that they will trust in Him because He is the one who brings healing to the broken and lost.

Jesus said to him, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me."
readJohn 14:6

Pray that those who are searching for a way to God and desiring truth will encounter the good news of eternal life and accept it.

Glory in his holy name; let the hearts of those who seek the LORD rejoice!
readPsalm 105:3

Pray that as people place their faith in Christ, they will glory in His holy name and that their hearts will rejoice.

Pray then like this: “Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name. Your kingdom come, your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven."
readMatthew 6:9b-10

Pray that God will raise up Christians who are driven by a desire to see God's name worshiped, His kingdom come, and His will be done, on earth as it is in heaven. Ask Him to send them to the lost in this people group and sustain them.

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

Strategic Progress Index

All

2 people groups

Photo People Group ID Name Country Population ▼ Strategic Progress Index Language Religion
Maabas PG013976 Maabas Nigeria 22,000 Engaged yet Unreached Vemgo-Mabas Animism
Mabas PG012667 Mabas Cameroon 16,500 Engaged yet Unreached Vemgo-Mabas Sunni 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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