The Holy Father erected the new Diocese of Ekwulobia, in Nigeria, by dividing the Diocese of Awka, making it suffrage of the Metropolitan See of Onitsha.
At the same time he appointed the first Bishop of the newly erected Diocese of Ekwulobia, H.E. Bishop Peter Ebere Okpaleke, previously Bishop Emeritus of the Diocese of Ahiara (Nigeria).
The seat of the newly erected Diocese of Ekwulobia is located in the state of Anambra, southeast of Nigeria, having St. Joseph’s Catholic Church as its cathedral.
Pope Francis has also named new Bishops for the Archdiocese of Atlanta, USA, and the Diocese of Kinkala, Republic of Congo.
Bishop Gregory J. Hartmayer, OFM Conv., currently serving as Bishop of Savannah, has been appointed as the new Metropolitan Archbishop of Atlanta, USA. He succeeds Archbishop Wilton Gregory, who was transferred last year to the Archdiocese of Washington, D.C.