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PEOPLE GROUP PROFILE

The Mbanja of Democratic Republic of the Congo

The Mbanja of Democratic Republic of the Congo, numbering approximately 720,000 people, are Unengaged and Unreached. They are a Banda ethnolinguistic group indigenous to the northwestern corner of the Democratic Republic of the Congo and can also be known as Mbandja, Mbandza, Mbanza. They are an Indigenous people, in the Sudanic people cluster of the Sub-Saharan African affinity bloc. Their primary religion is Christianity - Roman Catholicism. They primarily speak Mbandja.

Mbanza in Congo photo
Photo courtesy of Joshua Project. Photo Source: Anonymous

Fast Facts:

Affinity Group: Sub-saharan Africa Peoples
Country: Democratic Republic of the Congo
People Cluster: Sudanic
Primary Language(s): Mbandja (zmz)
Primary Religion(s): Christianity - Roman Catholicism
Population: 720,000
Strategic Progress Index (SPI): Unengaged and Unreached
Global Status of Evangelical Christianity (GSEC): Less than 2% Evangelical, No Active CP Activity
People Group ID: PG014650
View on Joshua Project

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Pray for the Mbanja of Democratic Republic of the Congo

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Dig Deeper (Religion):

Primary Religion: Christianity - Roman Catholicism
Religious Affiliation: Christianity

%
Christianity - Roman Cath… Adherents

Dig Deeper (Language):

Primary Language: Mbandja
Language Family: Niger-Congo

%
Mbandja Speakers

Media Resources in Mbandja:

Films:

Provided by the Jesus Film Project

View all resources

Bible Resources in Mbandja:

Provided by Faith Comes by Hearing

Or check out the Mbandja bible resources at Bible.com

Linked from YouVersion

View all resources

Next steps for the Mbanja

The Mbanja are Unengaged and Unreached, 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.

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

Next steps for the Mbanja

The Mbanja 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.

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

Next steps for the Mbanja

The Mbanja are No Longer Unreached, which means there are more than 2% evangelical Christian populations and there are churches consistent with evangelical faith and practice. There is still more to be done among them.

Empower local believers to begin praying for their own people
Continue gospel seed sowing and church planting among this group
Encourage local leaders to being leading church planting strategy and looking for Unreached and Unengaged groups nearby

Pray specifically for the Mbanja of Democratic Republic of the Congo

And he said to them, "This is my blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many."
readMark 14:23-24

Pray for those who may have heard the gospel but have not yet submitted their lives to Christ, that they will finally see the sacrifice which He made for them and surrender their lives to Him.

The LORD watches over the sojourners; he upholds the widow and the fatherless, but the way of the wicked he brings to ruin.
readPsalm 146:9

Pray for God to watch over people, wherever they are, and cause them to meet believers who will share the gospel with them clearly and lovingly.

Therefore do not throw away your confidence, which has a great reward.
readHebrews 10:35

Pray that as people place their faith in Christ, they will hold unswervingly to their faith and to their confidence in Christ, which has a great reward.

For we do not want you to be unaware, brothers, of the affliction we experienced in Asia. For we were so utterly burdened beyond our strength that we despaired of life itself. Indeed, we felt that we had received the sentence of death. But that was to make us rely not on ourselves but on God who raises the dead.
read2 Corinthians 1:8-9

Pray that as people hear and believe the gospel, they will be faithful as they walk through trials and will have an opportunity to be a witness to others in this people group of the goodness of God.

Mbanza (ROP3 - 106463) reported in the following countries:

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 Definitions page.

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