Countering the trend of diocesan consolidations in Italy, Canada, Alaska, and elsewhere, Pope Francis has split a Paraguayan diocese into two, creating the Diocese of Canindeyú from the territory of the Diocese of Ciudad del Este and naming its first bishop.
Before the split, the Diocese of Ciudad del Este was about the size of Massachusetts and had 56 parishes. The new Diocese of Canindeyú will have 12 parishes, 18 priests, and two seminarians. The reduced Diocese of Ciudad del Este retains 44 parishes, 117 priests, and 33 seminarians.
The papal decision to split the Paraguayan diocese in two echoes a decision in October 2023 to split an Argentine diocese in two.