Plans are far advanced for the Bishop, Bishop Emeritus, Priests, Religious, and the lay faithful of the Catholic Diocese of Wiawso to welcome the Apostolic Nuncio to Ghana, His Excellency Most Rev. Julien Kaboré, who will be embarking on a three-day Pastoral visit to the Diocese as part of his duties as the Pope’s representative in the West African country of Ghana.
Expected to arrive in Wiawso on Friday, March 27, his visit will coincide with the climax of the 25th anniversary of the Wiawso Diocese, expected to be marked on Saturday, March 28, 2026, and a Thanksgiving Mass on Sunday, March 29, 2026, to be presided over by the Nuncio at the Our Lady of Annunciation Cathedral.
In attendance to mark the Silver Jubilee on the theme: “Celebrating 25 Years as a Diocese: Moving into the Future with Hope and Courage,” will be the Bishop Emeritus of Wiawso, the Most Rev. Joseph Francis Kweku Essie; the Most Rev. Charles Gabriel Palmer-Buckle, Metropolitan Archbishop of Cape Coast, Honourable Wilbert Petty Brentum-Western North Regional Minister, Nana Ofori Ahenkan II, the Regent of Wiawso Traditional Council and Chief of Sefwi Boinzan, and many distinguished personalities.
The Catholic Diocese of Wiawso is a suffragan of the Archdiocese of Cape Coast. The Diocese was originally part of the Diocese of Sekondi-Takoradi, which in itself was carved out of the Archdiocese of Cape Coast in 1969.
The Catholic Diocese of Wiawso was created on December 22, 1999. It was, however, inaugurated on 25th March, 2000, with its first Bishop as Most Rev. Joseph Francis Kweku Essien. He was ordained and installed as a Bishop for the newly created Wiawso Diocese on the same day of the inauguration of the Diocese by Most Rev. Dominic Kodwo Andoh, the then Archbishop of Accra and now Peter Cardinal Kwadwo Appiah Turkson, who was then the Archbishop of Cape Coast Archdiocese.
At the creation of the Diocese of Wiawso, the Diocese had nine Parishes – St. Teresa, Bibiani; St. Agatha, Asafo; Immaculate Conception, Enchi; St Joseph, Wiawso; St Paul, Adjoafua; St Benedict, Bekwai; St. Joseph, Afere; St. Theresa, Yawmatwa, and St Michael, Dadieso.
The Diocese started with twenty-one diocesan priests, five Religious Brothers, and three Sisters, while the number of seminarians stood at seven.
Currently, the Wiawso Diocese can boast of 36 Parishes and 5 Rectorates; 55 Priests, 48 Seminarians, and 5 Religious Brothers and Sisters respectively.
On January 26, His Holiness Pope Francis appointed Msgr. Samuel Nkuah-Boateng as the new Bishop of the Catholic Diocese of Wiawso in the Western North Region to replace the Most Rev. Bishop Joseph Francis Essien, who retired at the age of 75.
Bishop Samuel Nkuah-Boateng took canonical possession of the Catholic Diocese of Wiawso on April 21, 2023. His installation ceremony was a significant event in the Diocese, attended by Traditional Authorities, Members of Parliament, and Municipal and District Chief Executives from the Western North Region. The ceremony was led by His Eminence Peter Cardinal Appiah Turkson and Most Rev. Henryk Mieczyslaw Jagodzinski, the Apostolic Nuncio to Ghana, and was attended by the former President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo.
Geographically, the Wiawso Diocese is coterminous with the Western North Region of Ghana, which is typically a rainforest region. It has a total land area of 8,696 square kilometres and a population of 880,855 (2021 Population Census). The Wiawso Diocese is bounded by eight Dioceses. It is bounded by Sunyani diocese to the north, Goaso to the north-east, Kumasi Archdiocese to the east, Obuasi diocese to the south-east, Cape Coast Archdiocese and Sekondi-Takoradi diocese to the south, and then the dioceses of Grand Bassam and Abengourou, both in the Republic of Côte d’Ivoire, to the west.
Administratively, there are nine administrative municipalities/districts located in the diocese. They are Wiawso Municipality, Bibiani-Ahwiaso-Bekwai Municipality, Aowin Municipality, Suaman District, Juaboso District, Bodi District, Akontombra District, Bia West District, and Bia East District. Traditionally, there are six paramount seats in the Diocese: Anhwiaso, Bekwai, Sefwi Wiawso, Aowin, Suaman, and Chirano.
The Catholic Diocese of Wiawso is located in an area where the population consists of Christians, Muslims, and Traditional adherents. The total number of baptized Catholics is 52,306. Members of other Christian denominations are estimated to be 320,845. Followers of non-Christian religions are also estimated to be 64,052. The total number of non-Catholics is 384,505.
All the religious denominations in the Diocese co-exist peacefully. Wiawso diocese lies in one of the richest regions in Ghana, endowed with resources such as gold, bauxite, cocoa, timber, and foodstuffs.
The main languages spoken by the people are Sehwi, Brossa, and Anyii. However, due to migration, a variety of languages are now spoken in the Diocese. In view of this, the general population in the Diocese can be described as heterogeneous. The people in the Diocese are generally subsistence farmers. A few of them are traders, artisans, and commercial drivers. Very few of them are in white-collar jobs.
By Damian Avevor//Newswatchgh.com
