Uruguay

Uruguay is located between Brazil and Argentina on the east bank of the River Plate estuary, with a population of over 3,340,000. Over half of the people of Uruguay (176,215 sq.km.) live in Montevideo, the capital city. The official language is Spanish with a literacy rate of over 97 percent. Uruguay was formerly a colony of Spain before gaining its independence in 1828. Since 1918 there has been a strong separation of church and state with no legal preference given to any religion. Religion does not play a strong part in the lives of most Uruguayans.

The first Grace Ministries International missionaries to Uruguay were Arnie and Sally Selfors who began the ministry in 1982. In the late 1990s GMI turned over the ministries to the national Grace Bible Church of Uruguay. Missionaries have worked with the national church since that time but there is no missionary presence in the country at this time. GMI continues to work closely with the national church.