KISUMU, APOSTOLIC VICARIATE of. — Situated in the western part of Kenya (British East Africa), and entrusted to the Society of St Joseph of Mill Hill for the Foreign Missions. It derives from the Apostolic Vicariate of the Upper Nile, from which the territory of Kavirondo was detached on 15 July 1925 and erected into an apostolic prefecture. This prefecture of Kavirondo developed rapidly and on 27 May 1932 was elevated to an apostolic vicariate with the name of K. It has an area of 65,000 sq km.
Here are the statistical data for 1949: inhabitants, over 1,520,000, of whom 222,166 are indigenous Catholics, 972 foreign Catholics, and 29,673 catechumens; indigenous priests 6, foreign priests 85, indigenous brothers 2, foreign brothers 4, indigenous sisters 49 with 121 novices, foreign sisters 51, major seminarians 7, one minor seminary with 80 pupils, catechists 957, women catechists 15, male teachers 442, female teachers 59; quasi-parishes 34, secondary mission stations 153, churches 34, chapels 153, maternity hospitals 7, with 160 beds. Orphanages 5 with 10 boys and 36 girls, schools 533 with 31,897 pupils of both sexes, schools of prayer 862 with 15,279 boys and 14,394 girls. Catholic Action is flourishing there.