Prefecture Apostolic of Kankan. – It was erected on 12 May 1949 from the eastern part of the Apostolic Vicariate of French Guinea, which on the same date received the name Apostolic Vicariate of Conakry. It is entrusted to the Congregation of the Holy Spirit. The erection became necessary because the vastness of the territory did not allow an effective missionary effort from the centre of Conakry. Indeed, the Fouta-Djallon mountain range, entirely Islamised, made communication difficult between the new Apostolic Prefecture and the territory of the present Apostolic Vicariate of Conakry.
The Apostolic Prefecture of Kankan forms a homogeneous ethnographic complex resulting from elements of the “Mandingo” race with the Kissien and Tomaj sub-tribes. It has easy communications with the various mission stations even during the rainy season. Its area is approximately 101,475 sq km, with 6 main stations, 15 priests, 2 brothers, 3 European sisters and 3 native sisters, together with more than 100 catechists. The Christians number about 7,000, the catechumens exceed 5,000, out of a population of about 382,000, of whom more than 200,000 are animists.