Advertisement

Pope Francis Appoints New Local Ordinary for Ziguinchor Catholic Diocese, Senegal

Mons. Jean Baptiste Valter Manga appointed Bishop of Senegal’s Catholic Diocese of Ziguinchor on 20 June 2024

The Holy Father has appointed Mons. Jean Baptiste Valter Manga Bishop of Senegal’s Catholic Diocese of Ziguinchor.

The appointment of the member of the Clergy of Senegalese Episcopal See, where he has been serving at the Parish of the Good Shepherd in Enampore and Vice Rector of Notre Dame Major Seminary in Brin was made public on Thursday, June 20 by the Holy See Press Office.

The Senegalese Diocese became vacant in November 2021 following the transfer to Tambacounda Diocese of Bishop Paul Abel Mamba Diatta, who had been at the helm of the Diocese since his Episcopal Ordination in April 2012.

After the Papal transfer of Bishop Mamba, the College of Consultors of Ziguinchor Diocese elected Mons. Fulgence Coly as Diocesan Administrator for the Diocese on 12 February 2022.

Born in June 1972 in the same Diocese, the Bishop-elect was ordained a Priest in December 2000 after completing his Priestly studies from the philosophical seminary of Brin and the major seminary in Sébikhotane.

Advertisement

Mons. Valter Manga holds a licentiate in Biblical Theology from the Collège des Bernardins in Paris, France, and a doctorate in ethnology and anthropology from Paris’ École des Hautes Études en Sciences Sociales (EHESS).

As a Priest, Mons. Valter Manga served as a teacher of mathematics and natural sciences at the Minor Seminary of Ziguinchor, chair of the Vocations Commission, and, parish Priest of Saint Benedict, Néma.

He also served as a lecturer and formator at the Major Seminary of Brin and the Assane Seck University of Ziguinchor, General Secretary of the Pastoral Office, and head of the Permanent Formation of Priests, among other responsibilities. 

Once Consecrated Bishop, Mons. Valter Manga will become the sixth Local Ordinary of the Senegalese Diocese that measures 7,339 km² with an estimated population of 143,693 Catholics, representing 21.7 percent of the total population, according to 2022 statistics.

The Diocese that was erected in April 1939 as Vicariate Apostolic of Dakar before being elevated to a Diocese in December 1999 is part of the Ecclesiastical Province of Dakar.

More in Africa

Silas Mwale Isenjia is a Kenyan journalist with a great zeal and interest for Catholic Church related communication. He holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Linguistics, Media and Communication from Moi University in Kenya. Silas has vast experience in the Media production industry. He currently works as a Journalist for ACI Africa.