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Ivorian Cleric Lecturing in France Appointed Auxiliary Bishop in Ivory Coast

Fr. Jacques Assanvo Ahiwa appointed Auxiliary Bishop of Bouake Archdiocese, Ivory Coast.

Pope Francis has appointed Fr. Jacques Assanvo Ahiwa, a lecturer at the University of Strasbourg in France, as the Auxiliary Bishop of Bouake Archdiocese located in central Ivory Coast.

The Tuesday, May 5 appointment will see Fr. Ahiwa return to his native country to assist 67-year-old Archbishop Paul-Siméon Ahouanan Djro, a members of Order of Friars Minor (OFM), meet the pastoral and administrative needs of the Metropolitan See of Bouake.

The 51-year-old Bishop-elect is a Clergy of the diocese of Grand-Bassam in Ivory Coast. He was ordained a priest in December 1997. He holds a licentiate in Biblical Theology from the University of Strasbourg, France. He started lecturing at the same University in 2018.

In his 23 years of priesthood, the Ivorian Bishop-elect has served in various capacities in Grand-Bassam diocese such as Parish Vicar, Secretary General and Director of the Pontifical Mission Societies (PMS).

The Metropolitan Archdiocese of Bouake was erected as a Prefecture Apostolic in May 1951, before being elevated to a diocese in September 1955.

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In December 1994, Pope St. John Paul II elevated the diocese to an Archdiocese, a Metropolitan See bringing together the three dioceses of Abengourou, Bondoukou, and Yamoussoukro.

Measuring 20,000 square kilometres and with a 17.6 percent Catholic population, according to 2015 statistics, the Metropolitan See is under the patronage of St. Theresa of the Child Jesus.