The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in Sierra Leone

The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in Sierra Leone refers to the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church) and its members in Sierra Leone. In 2025, Sierra Leone ranked as having the third most LDS Church members per capita in Africa, behind Cape Verde and Liberia.Membership statistics of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints

History

The first official meeting of the LDS Church in Sierra Leone was held in Goderich in January 1988, with the first LDS missionaries arriving in May of that year. They were under the Liberia Monrovia Mission. A district was organized in Freetown in 1990. At various times in the 1990s, missionaries were withdrawn due to the civil war in the country. In 1991, the Liberia Monrovia Mission was discontinued and Sierra Leone was placed under the Accra Ghana Mission. The first LDS-built meetinghouse in the country was completed in Bo in 2004. In 2007, the Sierra Leone Freetown Mission was created covering both Sierra Leone and Liberia.Church News, 2010 Edition, p. 571 In December 2012, Jeffrey R. Holland created the first LDS stake in Sierra Leone in Freetown. In 2013, Liberia was split off to be its own separate mission.

Stakes and districts The Freetown Sierra Leone Stake was organized on December 2, 2012, making it the 3,000th stake in the LDS Church. As of July 2026, Sierra Leone had the following stakes and districts:

Stakes and Districts Stake/DistrictOrganized MissionBo Sierra Leone Durba Stake20 Oct 2024Sierra Leone BoBo Sierra Leone East Stake15 Sep 2019Sierra Leone BoBo Sierra Leone North Stake12 Nov 2017Sierra Leone BoBo Sierra Leone West Stake12 Nov 2017Sierra Leone BoFreetown Sierra Leone East Stake3 Dec 2017Sierra Leone FreetownFreetown Sierra Leone Hill Station Stake10 Dec 2023Sierra Leone FreetownFreetown Sierra Leone Stake2 Dec 2012Sierra Leone FreetownKenema Sierra Leone Stake24 Nov 2019Sierra Leone BoKenema Sierra Leone West Stake12 Jul 2026Sierra Leone BoKissy Sierra Leone Stake18 Jun 2017Sierra Leone FreetownKoidu Sierra Leone District30 Mar 2025Sierra Leone BoKossoh Town Sierra Leone Stake5 Dec 2021Sierra Leone FreetownMakeni Sierra Leone District21 May 2017Sierra Leone FreetownMoriba Town Sierra Leone District26 Jun 2022Sierra Leone BoWellington Sierra Leone Stake10 Oct 2021Sierra Leone Freetown

Congregations in Sierra Leone not part of a stake or district include: Moyamba Branch Njama Branch Sierra Leone Freetown Dispersed Members Unit Sierra Leone Bo Dispersed Members Unit

The Dispersed Members Units serves families and individuals in Sierra Leone that is not in proximity of a meetinghouse.

Missions Sierra Leone Freetown, organized on July 1, 2007 Sierra Bo, organized in June 2024

2014 West Africa Ebola outbreak After two of its members died during the 2014 West Africa Ebola outbreak, the LDS Church required its missionaries to remain in their apartments as a precautionary measure. Then on August 1, 2014 the LDS Church announced that it would transfer all of its 274 missionaries out of Sierra Leone and Liberia, thereby closing the Sierra Leone Freetown Mission for the duration of the outbreak.

Temples On October 5, 2019, the Freetown Sierra Leone Temple was announced by church president Russell M. Nelson.

See also

Religion in Sierra Leone

References

External links LDS Newsroom (Sierra Leone) The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints - Official Site The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints - Visitors Site