The Mokole of Benin

The Mokole of Benin, numbering approximately 202,000 people, are Engaged yet Unreached. They are an Indigenous Yoruba-related people of northern Benin whose Mokole language is a Yoruboid variety centered in villages around Kandi, where the community is geographically separated from most other Yoruba-speaking peoples. They mostly adhere to Folk Islam and Mokole is their primary language.

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

Fast Facts:

Affinity Group: Sub-Saharan African Peoples
Country: Benin
People Cluster: Yoruba
Primary Language(s): Mokole (mkl)
Primary Religion(s): Folk Islam
Population: 202,000
Strategic Progress Index (SPI): Engaged yet Unreached
Global Status of Evangelical Christianity (GSEC): Less than 2% Evangelical, No Recent CP Activity
People Group ID: PG012342
View on Joshua Project

Pray for the Mokole of Benin

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: Folk Islam
Religious Affiliation: Islam

68%
%
Folk Islam Adherents

Dig Deeper (Language):

Primary Language: Mokole
Language Family: Atlantic-Congo

100%
%
Mokole Speakers

Media Resources in Mokole:

Films:

No film resources are listed for this language.

Bible Resources in Mokole:

Bible Name (Translation)VideoAudioText
2006 SIM✓✓✓

1 entry

Or check out the Mokole bible at Bible.com

Linked from YouVersion

SPI: Unreached yet Engaged

The Mokole 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 Mokole:
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 Mokole of Benin

For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through him.
readJohn 3:17

Pray for those who are living under the burdens of man-made religion to learn about the freedom Jesus offers them and turn to Him in faith.

For what can be known about God is plain to them, because God has shown it to them. For his invisible attributes, namely, his eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly perceived, ever since the creation of the world, in the things that have been made. So they are without excuse.
readRomans 1:19-20

Pray that God will use His creation – the “things that have been made” – to spark a fresh and passionate curiosity among them to draw near to the Maker and that, as they seek Him, He will make a way for them to hear the gospel and receive it with joy.

If then you have been raised with Christ, seek the things that are above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God.
readColossians 3:1

Pray that as people place their faith in Christ, they will seek the things that are above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God.

For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers over this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places.
readEphesians 6:12

Ask God to give those He sends to cross cultures the discernment they need to recognize the spiritual battle they are fighting. Pray God will protect their faith as they abide in Him.

Mokole Across Countries (ROP3 - 106764) 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.

Scroll to Top