Chronology of Catholic Dioceses:Notes on the Diocese of Kolda
On 3 February 2000, it was made public that The Holy Father, Pope John Paul II has established (December 22nd 1999) the diocese of Kolda (Senegal) with territory taken from the diocese of Ziguinchor, making it suffragan of the metropolitan Church of Dakar.
Some more information:
The new diocese of Kolda (Senegal)
The mother-diocese of Ziguinchor which embraces three zones each with its own history and geography covers an area of 28.350 sq km, in the region of Casamance in southern Senegal. Created on September 14th 1957 it is the diocese with the largest number of Catholics and native priests.
Geographically the new diocese of Kolda will cover the territories of Upper Casamance and Mid Casamance, and include the civil prefectures of Urban Kolda, Sedhiou and Valingara. It will border to the north with The Gambia and the diocese of Tambacounda, to the east with the same diocese of Tambacounda and Mali, to the south with Guinea and Guinea Bissau.
The reasons for establishing the new diocese are the following: the vast size of the diocese Ziguinchor; increasing numbers of catechumens and people anxious to know about the Church; consolidation of movements of conversion among the Camanjaques, the Mancagnes and the Conaguis; the scarcity of missionaries in areas where people are asking for the Gospel; lastly to help more capillary evangelization, also to counter advancing Islam.
Here are the statistics relative to the mother diocese of Ziguinchor and the new diocese of Kolda
Ziguinchor before
Kolda
Ziguinchor today
Area
28,350 sq km
16,011 sq km
7,339 sq km
Population
1,990,170
1,185,340
804,830
Catholics
33,126
81,333
231,793
Parishes
23
7
16
Priests (diocesan)
27
13
14
Priests (religious)
32
7
25
Sisters
92
19
73
Catechists
??
58
??
The new diocese of Kolda will be a suffragan, like Ziguinchor, of Dakar archdiocese. The Bishop will have his see at Kolda the main town, and the parish church of Our Lady of Victories will serve as the cathedral.
www.fides.org
- CT