Pope Leo XIV has officially created a new Catholic Diocese carving it out of the existing Diocese of Eldoret.
In a statement, his Excellency Bert Van Megen, the Apostolic Nuncio to Kenya, announced that the new ecclesiastical jurisdiction would be called the Catholic Diocese of Kapsabet.
“The Holy Father Pope Leo XIV has erected the new Catholic Diocese of Kapsabet, with territory taken from the Catholic Diocese of Eldoret, making it a suffragan of the Metropolitan Archdiocese of Kisumu (Kenya),” the statement read.
Pope Leo erects new Diocese in Kenya. Photo: Courtesy.
Pope Leo appointed Rt. Rev. John Kiplimo Lelei, the current Auxiliary Bishop of Eldoret, as the bishop of the newly established diocese.
KCCB said the appointment marks Bishop Lelei’s release from the titular See of Mount Numidia.
Bishop Lelei was appointed Auxiliary Bishop of Eldoret on March 27, 2024 and was consecrated and installed on May 25, 2024.
He is expected to be installed as Bishop of Kapsabet on August 30, 2025.
This comes about two years after Pope Leo’s predecessor, Pope Francis, erected the Diocese of Wote in Makueni County and appointed Rt. Rev. Paul Kariuki Njiru as the new bishop.
