Pope Francis has appointed the Bishop of Sokoto Catholic Diocese, Dr. Matthew Hassan Kukah, as a Member of the Dicastery for the Promotion of Human Integral Development.

The appointment was contained in a letter to Bishop Kukah dated December 11, 2020, and signed by His Eminence, Peter Cardinal Turkson, the Prefect of the Dicastery.

“By this appointment, Bishop Kukah will join other members of the Dicastery drawn from different regions of the world to advise and promote the Holy Father’s concerns on issues of justice and peace, human rights, torture, human trafficking, care of creation and other issues related to the promotion of human dignity and development. The appointment, which is renewable is for an initial period of five years. The Council will be formally inaugurated on a later date,” the statement said.

“This appointment adds to Bishop Kukah’s string of national and international engagements within the universal Church. He was first appointed a Consultor and later a member of the Pontifical Council for Inter-Religious Dialogue, Vatican City and served under three popes. He is currently, Chairman, Dialogue Committees of both the Regional Episcopal Conference of West Africa (RECOWA) and the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of Nigeria (CBCN)”.