Worthy Christian News > Christian > Global South Has The Most Christians, Asia Has Fastest Growing Christian Populations, Report Shows

Global South Has The Most Christians, Asia Has Fastest Growing Christian Populations, Report Shows

by Karen Faulkner, Worthy News Correspondent

(Worthy News) – A recent report on the status of Christianity around the world shows that – despite intense persecution in many countries there – the largest number of Christians are in the Global South, and that Asia (five regions) has the fastest growing Christian populations of all. Titled ‘Status of Global Christianity, 2024, in the Context of 1900–2050,’ the report was published by the US-based Center for the Study of Global Christianity (CSGC).

According to the CSGC report, the Global South will be home to 1,795,295,000 Christians by mid-2024, with the number projected to rise to 2,579,821,000 by 2050. 

The report shows that Christianity in Asia has grown at a rate of 2.11 percent since 2020. According to CSGC, there will be 415,647,000 Christians across the five regions of Asia by the middle of this year. The number is projected to rise over the next generation to 585,348,000 in 2050. “This is very encouraging despite the increasing hardships and persecution Christians face across Asia,” the International Christian Concern non-profit organization said in a statement about the report.

Commenting on the GSGC findings overall, the US-based Lifeway Research group noted that Christianity is not only growing around the world but it is growing faster than the rate of the global population. “From 2020 to the mid-point of 2024, the world’s population is expected to grow from more than 7.84 billion people to more than 8.11 billion, a 0.87% growth trend,” Lifeway Research said.

Nevertheless, according to the CSGC report, the Global North is seeing a decrease in the number of Christians, with 836,646,000 projected by mid-2024 but 746,525,000 projected for 2050. Europe and North America, in particular, are seeing declines: Europe (including Russia) is projected to have 564,737,000 Christians by mid-2024 but 488,979,000 in 2050; North America is expected to have 836,646,000 Christians by the middle of this year, but 746,525,000 in 2050.