People group profile · PG022776
The Semawa of Indonesia
The Semawa of Indonesia, numbering about 471,000 people, are Engaged yet Unreached. They are an ethnolinguistic community of Indonesia.
They are an indigenous people in the Bali-Sasak people cluster of the Malay Peoples. Their primary religion is Sunni Islam, and they primarily speak Sumbawa.
Fast facts
- Country
- Indonesia
- Population
- 471,000
- Affinity group
- Asian Pacific Rim Peoples
- People cluster
- Bali-Sasak
- Primary language
- Sumbawa (smw)
- Primary religion
- Sunni Islam
- Strategic Progress Index
- Engaged yet Unreached
- Evangelical
- Less than 2%
- GSEC
- Less than 2% Evangelical, No Recent CP Activity
- Lostness priority
- Frontier Unreached People Group
- Region
- South-Eastern Asia, Asia
- Location
- West Nusa Tenggara province: Sumbawa and Moyo islands
Where they live
Gospel status
The Semawa are Engaged yet Unreached, which means fewer than 2% are evangelical Christians, but there are sustained efforts to establish self-sustaining churches consistent with evangelical faith and practice. In GSEC terms, this people group is less than 2% evangelical, some evangelical resources are available, but there has been no active church planting among them within the past two years.
- Congregations exist Yes
- Church planting in the last two years No Churches Planted
Next steps for the Semawa
- 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
Primary religion
Sunni Islam · Islam
82% adherents
Primary language
Sumbawa · Austronesian family
100% speak Sumbawa
Gospel resources in Sumbawa
- Bible available, published 2019
- JESUS Film available
- Radio programs not available
- Gospel recordings available
- Audio resources available
- Bible stories available
Find more at the JESUS Film Project, Bible.com and Faith Comes by Hearing.
Pray for the Semawa
- Ephesians 5:8. Pray that those walking in darkness will turn to the light and live as children of light.
- Romans 10:14–15. Ask God to send messengers, so that people can hear, believe and call on the name of the Lord.
- Matthew 9:37–38. Ask the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into his harvest field.
- 2 Timothy 2:2. Pray for faithful local leaders who will teach others, so that the church multiplies.
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