Besides the Ivory Coast, what is the other French-speaking Mission in the Africa West Area?

It is the Benin Cottonu Mission that is made of of Togo and Benin - remember, our own Brother Eguko was the pioneer who opened up the Church in Benin.

Benin

1,439

Total Church Membership

1

Missions

11

Congregations

1

Family History Centers

When war erupted in the Democratic Republic of the Congo in August 1998 all non-Congolese missionaries were evacuated from that country. Among the evacuated was a missionary couple, Normand and Sharon Langevin. They were reassigned to neighboring Benin for one month in September 1998. It was here that the Langevins taught the final discussions to and baptized Claude P. TOze in October 1998. Toze was the first citizen to be baptized.

Benin was assigned to the Ivory Coast Abidjan Mission in January 1999. Demoine A. and Joyce Findlay were the first of several missionary couples assigned to support Church members in both Togo and Benin and work for legalization of the Church in those two countries.

In January 2001, Verne and Kathleen Davis become the first missionary couple assigned to live in Benin full time. They continued the work to gain legalization of the Church in Benin, and they also gave support to Church members in the capital of Cotonou.

The BYU Singers toured Benin in May 2001 and were so impressed with the members that they donated blue ties and blue dresses to be worn when legal recognition came. In March 2003, after years of working with government officials, the Church finally received legal recognition. That Sunday the blue ties and dresses wee worn in celebration. The following month four young missionaries, Reid Schellhous, Brandon J. Smith, Jean-Boscoh Kouassi, and Ambroise Gbahouo, were assigned to Benin.

Reorganized from the Ivory Coast Abidjan Mission to the Ghana Cape Coast Mission in July 2005.

Togo

Total Church Membership - 2,307

Stakes - 1

Congregations - 12

Family History Centers - 1

African Area President James O. Mason organized the Lome Togo group in July 1997 with Agnon Ameri Didier as presiding elder. There were by this time about 25 Latter-day Saints living there. In October 1998, 12 dancers from Togo joined the Church while at a dance festival in Bountiful, Utah. Due to unrest in the country, they had difficulties returning to their homeland.

In February 1999, Togo came under the Ivory Coast Abidjan Mission. That same month, the first missionary couple, Dermoine A. and Joyce Findlay, began missionary work in Togo and in February 1999, the Lome Branch was organized. Legal recognition of the Church was granted in July 2000. Church Educational System classes began to be taught in the late 1990s.