Pope Francis Appoints New Bishop in Nigeria, Auxiliary Bishop in Mozambique

When Consecrated Bishop, Mons. Daboh will begin to serve as the second Catholic Bishop of the Nigerian Episcopal See that was erected on 5 December 2000. 

The Diocese, which is part of Kaduna Ecclesiastical Province has a population of 49,627 Catholics according to 2020 statistics.

Meanwhile, Mons. Afonso, an official at the Dicastery for Evangelization in the Section for the First Evangelization and New Particular Churches, has been appointed as the second Auxiliary Bishop for the Catholic Archdiocese of Maputo, and assigned the Titular See of Putia in Numidia.

The member of the Institute of Consolata Missionaries was ordained a Priest in November 2002 after completing his theological studies at St. Eugene Mazenod Theological Seminary in the Archdiocese of Kinshasa in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC).

As a Priest, Mons. Afonso has served in various capacities, including Parish Vicar and Bursar of St. Hilaire Parish or Kinshasa Archdiocese, Formator and Bursar of the Theological Seminary of Kinshasa, and Local collaborator at the Apostolic Nunciature in DRC, among other Priestly services. 

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He obtained his Licentiate in Sacred Scripture from the Rome-based Pontifical Biblical Institute.

Once Consecrated Bishop, Mons. Afonso, alongside Bishop Tonito José Francisco Xavier Muananoua, will assist Archbishop João Carlos Hatoa Nunes who has been at the helm of Maputo Archdiocese since May 2023 following his 15 November 2022 appointment.

Erected in January 1612 as Apostolic Administration of Mozambique, it was elevated to the Archdiocese of Maputo in September 1976.

The Mozambican Archdiocese, which measures 26,358 square kilometers has a population of 1,482,700 Catholics, according to 2019 statistics.

Magdalene Kahiu is a Kenyan journalist with passion in Church communication. She holds a Degree in Social Communications from the Catholic University of Eastern Africa (CUEA). Currently, she works as a journalist for ACI Africa.