There are 12,000 unique people groups in the world. Half of these - 6,000 groups consisting of several billion people - are considered unreached by the gospel message. They live behind barriers of culture, terrain, language and orality.
In rural areas they dwell in deserts, on islands, jungles or mountains. They may be simple farmers, fishermen, hunters or livestock keepers. In urban areas they are the "huddled masses," many of whom live in slums. Most importantly, they have no access to the gospel.
They are illiterate or functionally illiterate - perhaps the greatest barrier of all. Even if a Bible were available in their language, they could not read it. Yet, they have ears to hear.
| People Group Facts | |
| People groups in the world | 11,626 |
| Unreached people groups | 6,510 |
| Unengaged people groups | 3,552 |
What Is An Unreached People Group?
According to peoplegroups.org, for strategic purposes, a people group is the largest group through which the gospel can flow without encountering significant barriers of understanding and acceptance. An unreached people group (UPG) is a people group in which less than 2% of the population is Evangelical Christian.
Researchers have discovered that there is no known plan or specific effort to reach about half of the world's unreached groups. They are called unengaged, unreached people groups (UUPGs), and they are the ones no one is trying to reach. The UUPGs represent the last frontier in missions. If you are interested in reaching them, read on.
What Are the Barriers to Reaching Them?
No Written Scripture - Many speak one of the 4,000+ languages that are without a written translation of the Bible. Many of these languages don't even have a written alphabet. Obviously they can't read about Jesus, but this also means there can be no evangelism tools that depend on a written translation, like films and traditional audio Bible recordings.
Orality - The vast majority could not read or understand a written translation of the Bible in their language even if one existed. Orality is more than just an inability to read, it is a way of thinking that we literates do not understand unless we intentionally study it. Literate concepts like outlines or expository teaching are less effective with oral people, even when they are spoken.
Culture - Each people group has an affinity not shared with any other people group because of language, religion, ethnicity, residence, occupation, class, caste or life circumstances. These cultural differences prevent the gospel from easily spreading from one people group to another, and this is the reason cross-cultural missions like StoryRunners exist.
Geography and Climate - They are often isolated by geography and climate. There are people groups in Central Asia that are only accessible a few months out of the year due to severe weather. In other places, nomadic groups can be hard to track down.
Hostile Governments and Oppressive Social Systems - Many of the world's systems are opposed to the message of Jesus Christ and actively try to stop it. Bibles and Christian media are confiscated or strictly controlled. Some classes of people are oppressed and guarded from outside influences. As a result, missions have difficulty accessing some areas.
Taken together, these issues form a formidable wall to the gospel. That's why, even after 2,000 years, more than a billion people still live in thousands of unreached people groups without access to the gospel message.
Where Do They Live?
The Table below gives you a good idea where the most unreached people groups are. To see a more graphical representation, you can visit www.worldmap.org
| Country | Total UUPG Population | UUPG Count |
| 1. India | 33,841,345 | 343 |
| 2. Sudan | 21,998,933 | 168 |
| 3. China | 11,202,380 | 231 |
| 4. Iraq | 11,033,003 | 23 |
| 5. Ethiopia | 9,416,271 | 93 |
| 6. Italy | 8,385,319 | 43 |
| 7. Honduras | 7,184,16 | 5 |
| 8. Indonesia | 6,592,387 | 97 |
| 9. Turkey | 5,719,185 | 36 |
| 10. Syria | 5,171,491 | 16 |
| 11. Saudi Arabia | 4,755,311 | 25 |
| 12. Algeria | 4,416,471 | 30 |
| 13. Russia | 4,400,500 | 35 |
| 14. Iran | 4,366,440 | 36 |
| 15. Madagascar | 4,030,447 | 6 |
| 16. Nepal | 4,028,268 | 71 |
| 17. France | 4,011,687 | 64 |
| 18. Pakistan | 3,832,873 | 44 |
| 19. Libya | 3,801,066 | 25 |
| 20. Mexico | 3,089,578 | 165 |
| 21. Eritrea | 2,784,356 | 13 |
| 22. Congo, DRC | 2,784,096 | 39 |
| 23. Chad | 2,449,008 | 82 |
| 24. Jordan | 2,442,522 | 10 |
| 25. Lebanon | 2,325,247 | 8 |
| 26. Venezulea | 2,243,776 | 22 |
| 27. Germany | 2,181,200 | 37 |
| 28. Brazil | 1,919,209 | 126 |
| 29. United Kingdom | 1,915,361 | 39 |
| 30. Afghanistan | 1,810,884 | 45 |
Who Are the Most Strategic People Groups to Reach?
There are two websites: www.finishingthetask.com and www.peoplegroups.org who are closely tracking the unengaged, unreached people groups with populations over 100,000. Visit these sites for current information.
The Task
Today, 639 unengaged, unreached people groups with populations over 100,000, together numbering over 535,000,000 souls, are still beyond the reach of the Gospel of Jesus Christ. They are spiritually lost and helpless like sheep having no Shepherd. Among them Christ remains unknown, unacknowledged, and unadored.
The 639 are perhaps the neediest of the needy. They are unengaged, which means that no one church, no one mission agency... no one has yet taken responsibility to tell them of our great God and Saviour, Jesus Christ. The 639 are at the very heart of the unfinished Great Commission task.
| The Unfinished Task | |
| World population increase | 6,859,455,189 |
| People hearing and believing the Gospel | 743,974,147 |
| People hearing and not believing the Gospel | 2,650,010,166 |
| People not having an opportunity to hear the Gospel | 3,454,723,302 |
