The Makonde of Mozambique

The Makonde of Mozambique, numbering approximately 705,000 people, are Engaged yet Unreached. They are a central Bantu ethnic group indigenous to southeast Tanzania and northern Mozambique. They mostly adhere to Ethnoreligion and Makonde is their primary language.

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

Fast Facts:

Affinity Group: Sub-Saharan African Peoples
Country: Mozambique
People Cluster: Bantu, Makua-Yao
Primary Language(s): Makonde (kde)
Primary Religion(s): Ethnoreligion
Population: 705,000
Strategic Progress Index (SPI): Engaged yet Unreached
Global Status of Evangelical Christianity (GSEC): Less than 2% Evangelical, No Recent CP Activity
People Group ID: PG015392
View on Joshua Project

Pray for the Makonde of Mozambique

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: Ethnoreligion
Religious Affiliation: Ethnoreligion

—
%
Ethnoreligion Adherents

Dig Deeper (Language):

Primary Language: Makonde
Language Family: Atlantic-Congo

100%
%
Makonde Speakers

Media Resources in Makonde:

Films:
TitleLink
JESUSView Film
JESUSView Film

2 films

Bible Resources in Makonde:

Bible Name (Translation)VideoAudioText
2013, Wycliffe Bible Translators, Inc✓✓

1 entry

Or check out the Makonde bible at Bible.com

Linked from YouVersion

SPI: Unreached yet Engaged

The Makonde 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 Makonde:
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 Makonde of Mozambique

Why, even the hairs of your head are all numbered. Fear not; you are of more value than many sparrows.
readLuke 12:7

Pray that those who don't yet know how to trust in Jesus will not be consumed by worry and anxiety, but will trust in the Father's care and provision for their daily needs and for their eternal salvation

Again Jesus spoke to them, saying, "I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will not walk in darkness, but will have the light of life."
readJohn 8:12

Pray that many will come to know Jesus, the light of the world, and have the light of life instead of walking in darkness.

In God, whose word I praise, in the LORD, whose word I praise, in God I trust; I shall not be afraid. What can man do to me?
readPsalm 56:10-11

Pray that as people place their faith in Christ, they will trust in the Lord's promises, knowing that He will uphold them with His righteous right hand.

There is nothing outside a person that by going into him can defile him, but the things that come out of a person are what defile him.
readMark 7:15

Pray for Christians to take any opportunity to share the hope of Jesus with lost people here, praying they will be wise like Jesus as they share the truth about what can defile people and what can make them clean.

Makonde Across Countries (ROP3 - 106097) reported in the following countries:

Strategic Progress Index
All

3 people groups

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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