History

Donkorkrom Apostolic Vicariate which began as a Prefecture was carved out from the Catholic Diocese of Koforidua in 2007 with Very Rev. Fr. Gabriel Edoe Kumordji, SVD, as its Apostolic Prefect.

The Vicariate is coterminous with the two geopolitical districts of Kwahu Afram Plains North and South.

In 2010, it was elevated to the status of an Apostolic Vicariate with Most Rev. Gabriel Edoe Kumordji, SVD as the first Apostolic Vicar to be ordained for the area. Currently, his Lordship, Most Rev. John Alphonse Asiedu, SVD, is the Apostolic Vicar.

Donkorkrom Apostolic Vicariate has eight Parishes on the mainland and one Island Mission which is also considered as a Parish for the Island Stations. The mainland Parishes include: St. Joseph Freinademetz at Ekye-Amanfrom, St. Cecilia at Forifori, St. Joseph the Worker at Maame Krobo, St. Fidelis at Tease, St. Theresa at Samanhyia, St. Francis Xavier Cathedral at Donkorkrom, St. Anthony at Amankwakrom and St. Mary, Mother of God at Adeemmra.

Adeemmra, for a very long time was the lone Parish in the whole of Afram Plains with only one Priest taking care of all the Stations, until it later gave birth to all the other parishes enlisted above.

Fr. Alfons Merten, SVD of blessed memory was one time the Parish Priest of Adeemmra and he foresaw that Donkorkrom being the District Capital had a potential for growth and expansion.

As at then, Donkorkrom was a very small community under Adeemmra Parish, so he began some developmental work there, the fruit of which is the Alfons Merten’s Pastoral Center which is today hosting people from all walks of life, for programmes and has become the Vicariate’s main Pastoral Center for now.

The Vicariate has currently twenty-two (22) Priests: thirteen are diocesans, seven belong to Divine Word Missionaries, one, a Spiritan and one Fidei Donum.

There are also a number of Women Religious Congregations, namely: Missionary Sisters, Servants of the Holy Spirit (SSpS), Missionary Sisters of Our Lady of the Holy Rosary (MSHR), Sisters of Mary, Mother of the Church (SMMC) and Handmaids of the Divine Redeemer of Accra (HDR). Health wise, Donkorkrom Apostolic Vicariate has two Health Centers: Holy Spirit Poly Clinic at Kwesi Fante and Holy Rosary Health Center at Amankwakrom.

In terms of Education, there are a number of Catholic Basic Public Schools in Donkorkrom with only four Private Catholic Schools: St. Joseph School, Maame Krobo, Holy Rosary School, Asikasu-Donkorkrom, School of the Holy Spirit, Kwasi-Fante and Mater Ecclesiae at Kwaekese.

There are two Second Cycle Public-Catholic Schools in the Vicariate: St. Fidelis Senior High Technical School at Tease and St. Mary’s Vocational / Technical School, Adeemmra.

The Afram Plains has an area of 5,040sqkm with a population of 218,235 as at 2010 based on a population growth rate of 3.6%. There are hundreds of villages on a number of Islands. It is estimated that as high as 80% of the population, live below the poverty line.

The depravity of the Afram Plains remains a major concern for its inhabitants. Migration in search of food and income to overcome conditions of poverty, tend to disrupt the smooth development of the District and the evangelization mission of the Church, thereby affecting the creation of parish communities and the growth of the Church.

The inhabitants of Afram Plains are cut off from the rest of the country due to limited physical access. The Vicariate is virtually a peninsula that can be reached through two main routes: Ekye – Amanfrom or Kpando Torkor, both by water-crossing using a Ferry, referred to in the local parlance as the ‘ponthoon’ (a boat for carrying passengers, goods and vehicles) or an engine boat.

There is however a mainland road through Asante- Akim Agogo into Maame Krobo, which is not very motorable especially in the rainy season. That stretch is also very isolated with not so many settlements along the road, which makes it also a bit dangerous. Donkorkrom is bounded by three main rivers namely the Volta, the Afram and the Obosum.