01
Who is being sent
The mission force no longer flows in one direction. Brazil, South Korea, Nigeria and the Philippines now send workers into places Western missionaries cannot easily enter — and Filipino nurses, Brazilian engineers and Nigerian traders carry the Gospel on ordinary work visas.
| Measure | Estimate | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Cross-cultural missionaries | ~450,000 | sent across a cultural or national boundary |
| Largest sending nations | United States, Brazil, South Korea, Philippines, Nigeria | by total workers sent; several of these were themselves mission fields a century ago |
02
Where they are — and are not
Most missionaries serve among peoples that already have a church. Relatively few work among the 4,490 unreached people groups, where 2.3 billion people still have no meaningful access to the Gospel.
FAQ
Related questions
Which country sends the most missionaries?
The United States sends the most by total number, followed by Brazil and South Korea.