L'Osservatore Romano

Myanmar, Bangladesh: Catholics by the Numbers

Pope to Visit November 27, 2017 – December 2, 2017

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Statistics of the Catholic Church in Myanmar and Bangladesh as of 31 December 2015 (from the Central Office for Church Statistics)
Table 1 – Population and ecclesiastical structure
Table 2 – People engaged in activities of the apostolate
Table 3 – Indicators of pastoral workload
Table 4 – Priestly Vocations
Table 5 – Educational centers owned/managed by ecclesiastics or religious
Table 6 – Charitable and social centers owned/managed by ecclesiastics or religious
 
The following are some statistical data relating to the situation of the Catholic Church in Myanmar and Bangladesh as of 31 December 2015:
 
Table 1 – Population and ecclesiastical structure

Myanmar Bangladesh
Area (km2) 676,578 143,998
Population (in thousands) 51,790 153,998
Density (inhabitants/km2) 77 1,104
Catholics (in thousands) 659 375
Catholics per 100 inhabitants 1.27 0.24
Ecclesiastical circumscriptions 16 8
Parishes 384 106
Other pastoral centres 43 374
Catholics per pastoral centre 1,544 781

 
Table 2 – People engaged in activities of the apostolate

Myanmar Bangladesh
Bishops (situation on 31.10.2017) 22 12
Diocesan priests 777 189
Religious priests 111 183
Total priests 888 372
Permanent deacons 2
Men religious (other than priests) 128 111
Professed women religious 1,961 1,269
Members of secular Institutes 1 1
Lay missionaries 601 1,210
Catechists 3,056 1,427

 
Table 3 – Indicators of pastoral workload

Myanmar Bangladesh
Catholics per priest 742 1,007
Catholics per pastoral worker 99 85
Priests per pastoral centre 2.1 0.78
Priests per 100 people engaged in activities of the apostolate 13.7 8.7

 
Table 4 – Priestly Vocations

Myanmar Bangladesh
Minor seminarians 698 671
Major seminarians 394 122
Major seminarians per 100,000 inhabitants
 
0.76 0.1
Major seminarians per 100,000 Catholics 59.79 32.5
Major seminarians per 100 priests 44.37 32.8

 
Table 5 – Educational centers owned/managed by ecclesiastics or religious

Myanmar Bangladesh
Schools:
Pre-school and primary 369 647
Lower middle and secondary 4 84
Higher and university 2 14
Students in:
Pre-school and primary schools 13,327 74,224
Lower middle and secondary schools 386 49,720
Higher and university institutes 128 12,014

 
Table 6 – Charitable and social centers owned/managed by ecclesiastics

Myanmar Bangladesh
Hospitals 6 10
Clinics 65 74
Leper colonies 3 9
Homes for the elderly and disabled 13 14
Orphanages and nurseries 390 89
Family consultation centres 2 25
Special centres of social education or rehabilitation 70 8
Other institutions 19 124

 
© Libreria Editrice Vatican
 
JF

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