The Sasawa of Indonesia

The Sasawa of Indonesia, numbering approximately 400 people, are No Longer Unreached. They are a small indigenous Papuan ethnolinguistic community of the Apauwar River region in Sarmi Regency, Papua, Indonesia. They are associated with the Sasawa language and are part of the broader network of small interior peoples inhabiting the Apauwar basin. They mostly adhere to Protestantism and Kwerba is their primary language.

Photo by Google. (2026). Image generated by Gemini 3.1 Flash Lite: Sasawa

Fast Facts:

Affinity Group: Pacific Islander Peoples
Country: Indonesia
People Cluster: New Guinea
Primary Language(s): Kwerba (kwe)
Primary Religion(s): Protestantism
Population: 400
Strategic Progress Index (SPI): No Longer Unreached
Global Status of Evangelical Christianity (GSEC): 10% or Greater Evangelical
People Group ID: PG023034
View on Joshua Project

Pray for the Sasawa of Indonesia

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: Protestantism
Religious Affiliation: Christianity

65%
%
Protestantism Adherents

Dig Deeper (Language):

Primary Language: Kwerba
Language Family: Greater Kwerba

76%
%
Kwerba Speakers

Media Resources in Kwerba:

Films:

No film resources are listed for this language.

Bible Resources in Kwerba:

No Bible resources are listed for this language.

Or check out the Kwerba bible at Bible.com

Linked from YouVersion

SPI: No longer Unreached

The Sasawa 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.

Next steps for the Sasawa:
Empower local believers to begin praying for their own people
Continue gospel seed sowing and church planting
Encourage local leaders to being leading church planting strategy and looking for Unreached and Unengaged groups nearby

Pray specifically for the Sasawa of Indonesia

And when you fast, do not look gloomy like the hypocrites, for they disfigure their faces that their fasting may be seen by others. Truly, I say to you, they have received their reward.
readMatthew 6:16

Pray that those who live to please men and not God will turn from the emptiness of seeking approval from others and find true satisfaction in the treasure of a personal relationship with God.

And when they saw it, they made known the saying that had been told them concerning this child.
readLuke 2:17

Pray that the lost will receive the good news of salvation in God's Son, have hearts eager to share it with others, and that all who hear will respond with wonder and faith!

We give thanks to you, O God; we give thanks, for your name is near. We recount your wondrous deeds.
readPsalm 75:1

Pray that as people place their faith in Christ, they will give thanks to the Lord for His wondrous works and declare His goodness to all people.

To the Jews I became as a Jew, in order to win Jews. To those under the law I became as one under the law (though not being myself under the law) that I might win those under the law.
read1 Corinthians 9:20

Pray that believers from similar cultures will be compelled by Christ's love to reach people who don't know the gospel, and that those people will receive the good news with joy.

Sasawa Across Countries (ROP3 - 108738) reported in the following countries:

Strategic Progress Index
All

1 people group

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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