Pope Francis Appoints Archbishop Philip Anyolo To Head Nairobi Archdiocese

VATICAN,Oct,28 –  Pope Francis has appointed Archbishop Phillip Anyolo as the Head of the Catholic Archdiocese of Nairobi.

The Nairobi Archdiocese is the largest in Kenya.

Archbishop Anyolo will take over from Nairobi Auxiliary Bishop David Kamau who has been the acting administrator of the church since the retirement of Cardinal John Njue in January.

Brief History

Archbishop Anyolo was born onMay 18, 1956, in Tongaren, Bungoma county.

He was ordained priest for the Catholic Diocese of Eldoret, on October 15, 1983. Pope John Paul II appointed Philip Anyolo as Bishop of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Kericho on February 3, 1996.

Anyolo served as the ordinary of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Kericho, Kenya, until March 22, 2003.

On February 20, 2002, Anyolo was appointed Apostolic Administrator of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Homabay, upon the resignation of Rt. Rev. Linus Okok Okwach. On March 22, 2003, Pope John Paul II appointed him as the second Bishop of that diocese. He was installed on May 23, 2003.

He has served as the Chairperson of the Kenya Conference of Catholic Bishops.

He was appointed Archbishop of Kisumu on November 15, 2018 and installed on January 12, 2019.