His Holiness Pope Leo XIV has appointed the Archbishop of Lagos, Most Rev. Dr. Alfred Adewale Martins, as a member of the Vatican’s Dicastery for Evangelization, marking a major milestone for the Catholic Church in Nigeria and across West Africa.
The appointment, which took effect on June 30, 2026, makes Archbishop Martins the first Nigerian bishop to serve as a member of the Dicastery for Evangelization, one of the Vatican’s most important departments responsible for promoting the Church’s missionary work around the world.
The Vatican’s decision is seen as recognition of Archbishop Martins’ nearly three decades of service as a bishop and his leadership of one of Africa’s largest and most active Catholic archdioceses.
A statement announcing the appointment said Pope Leo XIV selected the Lagos Archbishop because of his 27 years of distinguished episcopal ministry and his contributions to the growth of the Catholic Church in Nigeria and sub-Saharan Africa.
The Dicastery for Evangelization was reorganised under the late Pope Francis through the Apostolic Constitution *Praedicate Evangelium* in 2022. Under Pope Leo XIV, the department continues to play a central role in spreading the Christian faith, supporting young Churches in developing countries and strengthening evangelisation efforts in regions where Christianity has existed for centuries.
As a member of the Dicastery, Archbishop Martins will participate in meetings, consultations and policy discussions that shape the Catholic Church’s missionary activities worldwide. Although he will remain Archbishop of Lagos, he will travel to Rome whenever his duties at the Vatican require his presence.
The appointment places the Nigerian cleric among senior Catholic leaders from different parts of the world who advise the Pope on matters relating to evangelisation and the development of local Churches.
Archbishop Martins was born on June 1, 1959, in Abeokuta, Ogun State. He was ordained a Catholic priest on September 18, 1983, at Holy Cross Cathedral in Lagos by the late Anthony Cardinal Okogie.
His academic background is regarded as one of the strongest among Nigerian Catholic bishops. He graduated with First Class Honours in Theology from the Pontifical Urban University in Rome. He also earned postgraduate degrees in Philosophy from the University of Ibadan and the University of St Andrews in Scotland before beginning doctoral studies at the University of Edinburgh.
His rise within the Catholic Church began in 1997 when Saint John Paul II appointed him the first Bishop of the Diocese of Abeokuta.
As pioneer bishop, Archbishop Martins was given the task of building a new diocese from the ground up. During his 14 years in Abeokuta, he expanded the number of diocesan priests from just eight to more than 60 while strengthening church structures and pastoral activities.
His work in Abeokuta earned him wider recognition within the Catholic Church and, in May 2012, Pope Benedict XVI appointed him Archbishop of Lagos, succeeding Cardinal Anthony Okogie.
Since taking charge of the Archdiocese of Lagos, Archbishop Martins has overseen significant growth in both pastoral and administrative activities.
He has ordained 84 priests and increased the number of deaneries in the archdiocese from seven to 20. During his leadership, more than 50 churches and parishes have also been dedicated.
Today, the Metropolitan Archdiocese of Lagos is one of the largest Catholic jurisdictions in Africa.
The archdiocese covers about 3,577 square kilometres and serves an estimated population of 20 million people, including about 3.5 million Catholics.
It consists of more than 230 parishes, over 200 outstations, about 100 Mass centres and 20 deaneries spread across Lagos State.
Church activities are supported by about 600 priests, including diocesan priests, Fidei Donum priests from within and outside Nigeria, and members of various religious congregations.
The archdiocese also has hundreds of religious brothers and sisters, with more than 360 female religious serving in different communities.
Beyond spiritual activities, the Catholic Church in Lagos runs a wide range of educational, healthcare and charitable institutions.
These include more than 100 healthcare facilities, about 80 nursery, primary and secondary schools, and several pastoral, social welfare and humanitarian centres providing services to communities across the state.
One of the major achievements recorded during Archbishop Martins’ tenure is the development of Augustine University, Ilara-Epe.
Under his leadership, the institution became the first Catholic-owned university in Lagos State to obtain full degree-awarding status.
He also established the St. John Mary Vianney Home for Priests to cater for the welfare of clergy and created the Archdiocesan Pastoral Centre to strengthen pastoral formation and church administration.
At the national level, Archbishop Martins has remained one of the most influential Catholic leaders in Nigeria.
He served as Secretary-General of the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of Nigeria (CBCN) between 2008 and 2012 and currently serves as the conference’s Vice President.
He is also Co-Chairman of the Nigerian Anglican-Roman Catholic Commission, a body that promotes dialogue and cooperation between the two Christian traditions.
In addition, he chairs the Governing Council of the Catholic Institute of West Africa (CIWA), one of the region’s leading theological institutions.
Archbishop Martins was among the Nigerian delegates to the Second Special Assembly for Africa of the Synod of Bishops held in Rome in 2009, where Catholic leaders discussed the future of the Church on the African continent.
Between 2022 and 2025, he also served as Chairman of the Board of the Catholic Caritas Foundation of Nigeria, leading humanitarian and social intervention programmes across the country.
Catholic observers have described his appointment to the Dicastery for Evangelization as an important recognition of the growing influence of the African Church within global Catholicism.
Over the past several decades, Africa has become one of the fastest-growing regions for the Catholic Church, with Nigeria accounting for one of the continent’s largest Catholic populations.
Church leaders believe Archbishop Martins’ experience in managing the challenges of ministry in Lagos—Africa’s largest city and one of the world’s fastest-growing urban centres—will provide valuable insights into the Vatican’s missionary work.
His appointment also reflects the increasing role African bishops now play in shaping decisions affecting the global Catholic Church.
For Nigeria, the development is being seen as a moment of pride, as one of its most experienced church leaders joins a Vatican body responsible for guiding evangelisation efforts across different parts of the world while continuing his pastoral ministry as the fourth Archbishop of Lagos. He succeeds Archbishop Leo Hale Taylor, Archbishop John Kwao Amuzu Aggey and Anthony Cardinal Okogie in the historic Lagos archdiocese.