The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in the Guianas refers to the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church) and its members in the Guianas, primarily French Guiana, Guyana, and Suriname. This is part of the Caribbean Area which is more similar culturally and linguistically than the rest of South America.
The first branch (small congregation) was organized in Georgetown, Guyana in 1980. In 2022, there were 8,942 members in 19 congregations.
French Guiana
The first members of the French Guiana were baptized in France and returned in the early 1980s. Elder Charles Didier of the Seventy visited in March 1988 and organized a group. Serge and Christie Bonnoit, the first converts in French Guiana, were baptised in November 1988. The first missionaries arrived in July 1989. In August 1989, the Cayenne Branch was created. The Cayenne meetinghouse was dedicated in March 1999.
In August 1989, the Cayenne Branch had 23 members. In 2022, there were 500 members in French Guiana. A Family History Center is located inside the meetinghouse.
Guyana
The first missionaries entered Guyana was as senior missionary couple, Benjamin and Ruth Hudson, who arrived on August 19, 1988. Sacrament meeting was held the next month which included the Abdulla family who was previously baptized in Canada. The first convert, Luanna Abdulla, was baptized on October 23, 1988. The church was legally recognized in February 1989 and a branch in Georgetown was organized the following month. 23 members attended branch meetings when it was organized. 45 were in attendance in February 1990 when Elder M. Russell Ballard dedicated and blessed the land for missionary work. Greater numbers of missionaries were assigned to Guyana over the years following the dedication. Seminary and institute commenced in the mid-1990s. President Desmond Hoyte was a special guest at a luncheon on September 15, 1992 that was hosted by Elder Stephen D. Nadauld of the Seventy and the Trinidad Tobago Mission president.
In 2000, the first branch outside of Georgetown was organized in New Amsterdam. On 15 March 2003, the first meetinghouse was dedicated in Prashad Nagar, with 250 members present. On December 21, 2003, the Georgetown Guyana District was organized. In 2009, Linden became the first city in the interior to open for missionary work.
In September 2009, the Guyanese government requested the Church to remove foreign missionaries who were claimed to have expired missionary visas. Missionaries reported that they were incarcerated for one day due to alleged visa violations. The Guyanese government enforced a new limit on the number of foreign missionaries able to serve in Guyana to around twenty. Later that month, the Church withdrew about forty of the sixty missionaries serving in Guyana. Local members were provided with the opportunity to serve as full-time missionary companions in order to keep proselyting areas open, but this approach was not sustained. Government officials expressed concerns that the Church had a larger missionary force than most Christian churches in Guyana notwithstanding the comparatively small number of Latter-day Saints in the country.
Interweave Solutions partnered with The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints in 2014 to provide business training to its members in Guyana. After measurable success the First Lady of Guyana made it a key part of her office's agenda. In 2016, Elder Dale G. Renlund attended a district conference in Georgetown. In 2017, the First Lady, Mrs. Sandra Granger spoke to the youth at their youth conference on July 1, 2017, encouraging them to embrace education and instill moral values.
Humanitarian Efforts
The Church has conducted 170 humanitarian and development projects in Guyana since 1988. Most of these projects have been community projects although emergency response, maternal and newborn care, refugee response, vision care, and wheelchair donations have been provided. In 2011, a senior missionary couple was assigned to Georgetown to help the unemployed find sustainable employment. Between 2007 and 2012, the value of church humanitarian aid projects was US$18,047,345. In May 2019, Close to $1 Million US dollars in food was given to Guyana's Civil Defence Commission (CDC). In May 2020, the Civil Defense Commission (CDC) received $20Million worth of food and hygienic supplies from the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints to assist those affected by COVID-19.
Districts and Congregations
As of February 2023, Guyana had the following districts and congregations: