Pope Leo XIV appoints Kenyan as Vatican adviser on Human Development
Pope Leo XIV appoints Kenyan as Vatican adviser on Human Development
Pope Leo XIV has appointed Kenyan development expert Lucy Afandi Esipila as a consultant to the Vatican’s Dicastery for Promoting Integral Human Development.
Esipila, who heads Caritas Africa, was among 12 new consultors appointed by the Pope in an announcement made on August 18, 2026.
Her appointment places her in a Vatican department that deals with major global issues, including poverty, migration, healthcare, environmental protection, humanitarian assistance, and human development.
Esipila has extensive experience in development and humanitarian work, having begun her Caritas career in 2012 with the Catholic Diocese of Maralal in northern Kenya.
During her time in Maralal, she worked with pastoralist communities on food security, livelihoods, gender, communication, and development, including programmes supporting communities affected by climate change and competition over water and pasture.
She later served as national coordinator for research, communications, and advocacy at Caritas Kenya before joining Caritas Africa, where she has worked on advocacy with the African Union, the European Union, and the United Nations.
Esipila was elected Regional Executive Secretary of Caritas Africa in 2023, becoming the first woman to lead the continental Catholic humanitarian and development network.
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Her work has included advocacy on Africa’s economic challenges, debt, climate action, food security, and humanitarian response, areas that closely align with the mandate of the Vatican dicastery.
She was appointed alongside Ugandan priest and scholar Rev Emmanuel Katongole, a professor of theology and peace studies at the University of Notre Dame, whose work has focused on peacebuilding, reconciliation, and social transformation.
The third African appointee is Dr Omer S. Combary, a Burkinabè economist and lecturer at Université Thomas Sankara whose research focuses on agricultural productivity, poverty measurement, rural development, and the impact of social services on rural communities.
The other nine consultors appointed by Pope Leo XIV include academics, healthcare and social ethics experts from Europe, North America, Asia and Australia, reflecting the wide range of expertise sought by the dicastery.
The consultants will serve five-year terms and provide professional, scientific, theological, and regional expertise to support the Vatican department’s work on issues affecting human dignity and social development.
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