Benin
4,765
Total Church Membership
Population vs. Church Members
2
Stakes
19
Congregations
1
FamilySearch Centers
1
Missions
History
In the late 1990s, a small group of Beninese began meeting in the home of Lincoln Dahl, a Latter-day Saint working in the American embassy in Cotonou, to partake of the sacrament and study the scriptures. When Dahl left Benin in 1997, Mathias Egoku, a Nigerian member of the Church living in Benin, led the group, which was beginning to grow. Two years later, missionaries from the Côte d’Ivoire Abidjan Mission began teaching the gospel over the phone to interested people in Cotonou. No baptisms, however, could be performed until after the Church was officially recognized in the country.
In 2003 the Church received formal recognition in Benin, and two years later, the first branch was organized in Cotonou with Egoku as president. Other branches soon followed. The Saints in Benin answered the charge to “labor in my vineyard, and to build up my church, and to bring forth Zion” (Doctrine and Covenants 39:13). The Church in Benin grew quickly. Just three years after the first branch was established, three branches had been organized. In 2012 a district was created in Cotonou and, just four years later, the district became the first stake in Benin. Latter-day Saints in Benin continue to share the gospel and to reach out in love to their community.
For Journalist Use Only
Lionel Missigbeto
Phone: +229 9772 3086
Africa
Total Church Membership
736,701
Members
2,476
Congregations
Missions
39Missions
FamilySearch Centers
Temples
5Temples
Asia
Total Church Membership
1,259,094
Members
2,110
Congregations
Missions
45Missions
FamilySearch Centers
Temples
8Temples
Europe
Total Church Membership
500,239
Members
1,350
Congregations
Missions
34Missions
FamilySearch Centers
Temples
14Temples
North America
Total Church Membership
9,489,479
Members
18,476
Congregations
Missions
174Missions
FamilySearch Centers
Temples
112Temples
Oceania (Pacific)
Total Church Membership
587,462
Members
1,301
Congregations
Missions
18Missions
FamilySearch Centers
Temples
10Temples
South America
Total Church Membership
4,232,425
Members
5,602
Congregations