The Central Swahili of Congo, Democratic Republic of the

The Central Swahili of Congo, Democratic Republic of the, numbering approximately 64,500 people, are Unengaged and Unreached. They are an indigenous community of Congo (Kinshasa). They mostly adhere to Sunni Islam and Swahili (individual language) is their primary language.

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

Fast Facts:

Affinity Group: Sub-Saharan African Peoples
Country: Congo, Democratic Republic of the
People Cluster: Bantu, Swahili
Primary Language(s): Swahili (individual language) (swh)
Primary Religion(s): Sunni Islam
Population: 64,500
Strategic Progress Index (SPI): Unengaged and Unreached
Global Status of Evangelical Christianity (GSEC): Less than 2% Evangelical, No Recent CP Activity
People Group ID: PG014535
View on Joshua Project

Pray for the Central Swahili of Congo, Democratic Republic of the

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: Sunni Islam
Religious Affiliation: Islam

93%
%
Sunni Islam Adherents

Dig Deeper (Language):

Primary Language: Swahili (individual language)
Language Family: Atlantic-Congo

100%
%
Swahili Speakers

Media Resources in Swahili (individual language):

Films:
TitleLink
JESUSView Film
JESUSView Film
MagdalenaView Film
The SaviorView Film

4 films

Bible Resources in Swahili (individual language):

Bible Name (Translation)VideoAudioText
Habari Njema (Interconfessional)✓✓

1 entry

Or check out the Swahili (individual language) bible at Bible.com

Linked from YouVersion

Explore Lostness and Next Steps

Unengaged and Unreached

Strategic Priority Index (SPI): Unengaged and Unreached (SPI: 0), which means there are less than 2% evangelical Christian populations among which there are no known efforts focused on establishing self-sustaining churches consistent with evangelical faith and practice.
Lostness Priority Index (LPI): Pioneer Unreached People Group, (LPI: 1), 0.1% or Greater but Less than 0.5% Evangelical.
Global Status of Evangelical Christianity (GSEC): Less than 2% Evangelical, No Recent CP Activity (GSEC: 1), this people group is less than 2% evangelical, some evangelical resources are available, but there has been no active church planting among them within the past two years

Next steps for the Central Swahili:
Begin signifcant prayer and fasting for this group
Send cross-cultural teams to discover and research this people group
Begin gospel seed sowing and church planting among this group

Pray specifically for the Central Swahili of Congo, Democratic Republic of the

For my own sake, for my own sake, I do it, for how should my name be profaned? My glory I will not give to another.
readIsaiah 48:11

Pray that those who have been living for their own glory will turn to the One who is worthy of all praise and find their true identity in Him.

Ascribe to the LORD the glory due his name; bring an offering, and come into his courts!
readPsalm 96:8

Pray for people here to humbly give God the glory due His name.

All the ends of the earth shall remember and turn to the LORD, and all the families of the nations shall worship before you.
readPsalm 22:27

Pray that all families of the nations will worship the Lord in spirit and in truth.

You also must help us by prayer, so that many will give thanks on our behalf for the blessing granted us through the prayers of many.
read2 Corinthians 1:11

Pray that many people will join in praying for the spread of the gospel here, and that God will answer these prayers by drawing more people to Himself.

Swahili Across Countries (ROP3 - 109644) reported in the following countries:

Strategic Progress Index
All

17 people groups

PhotoPeople Group IDNameCountryPopulation ▲Strategic Progress IndexLanguageReligion
SwahiliSwahiliSeychelles600Engaged yet UnreachedSwahili (individual language)Sunni Islam
SwahiliSwahiliComoros1,200Engaged yet UnreachedSwahili (individual language)Sunni Islam
SwahiliSwahiliUganda5,600Unengaged and UnreachedSwahili (individual language)Sunni Islam
SwahiliSwahiliCanada9,300Unengaged and UnreachedSwahili (individual language)Sunni Islam
SwahiliSwahiliMayotte10,500Engaged yet UnreachedSwahili (individual language)Sunni Islam
SwahiliSwahiliBurundi15,000Unengaged and UnreachedSwahili (individual language)Sunni Islam
SwahiliSwahiliMozambique18,500Engaged yet UnreachedSwahili (individual language)Folk Islam
SwahiliSwahiliRwanda21,000Unengaged and UnreachedSwahili (individual language)Sunni Islam
Black AfricansBlack AfricansUnited Arab Emirates31,000Engaged yet UnreachedSwahili (individual language)Sunni Islam
SwahiliSwahiliSudan34,000Unengaged and UnreachedSwahili (individual language)Sunni Islam
SwahiliSwahiliZambia39,500No Longer UnreachedSwahili (individual language)Ethnoreligion
Bantu SwahiliBantu SwahiliSomalia55,500Unengaged and UnreachedSwahili (individual language)Sunni Islam
Coastal SwahiliCoastal SwahiliKenya60,000Engaged yet UnreachedSwahili (individual language)Sunni Islam
Central SwahiliCentral SwahiliCongo, Democratic Republic of the64,500Unengaged and UnreachedSwahili (individual language)Sunni Islam
SwahiliSwahiliUnited States82,000No Longer UnreachedSwahili (individual language)Sunni Islam
Arabized AfricansArabized AfricansSaudi Arabia555,000Unengaged and UnreachedSwahili (individual language)Sunni Islam
Coastal SwahiliCoastal SwahiliTanzania1,095,000Engaged yet UnreachedSwahili (individual language)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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