THE Archbishop of Canterbury has appointed the Bishop of Kajo-Keji in South Sudan, the Rt Revd Anthony Poggo, as his adviser for Anglican Communion affairs, Lambeth Palace announced on Tuesday. Bishop Poggo, who will work with Archbishop Welby at the Palace, is due to move to London with his wife, Jane, and youngest daughter, Joy, at the end of the month.

Archbishop Welby said that he was delighted by the appointment, and thanked the Archbishop and Primate of the Episcopal Church of Sudan, the Most Revd Daniel Deng Bul, for releasing Bishop Poggo “as a gift to the wider church”. The appointment, he said, “provides a necessary voice and perspective from the global south in the team at Lambeth.”

Bishop Poggo was ordained in 1995 after working with the Christian mission movement Scripture Union. In 2002 he joined the international Christian organisation ACROSS, which works to support communities, strengthen churches and improve education and livelihoods in South Sudan. He became its executive director in 2004 before his election as Bishop of Kajo-Keji in 2007.

Bishop Poggo was awarded an Honorary Doctorate in 2012 for his work in nurturing the Church in service of the community. He also holds an MA in Biblical Studies from Nairobi International School of Theology (now the International Leadership University), and an MBA from Oxford Brookes University.

Bishop Poggo said this week that he and his family are excited for the next stage of his ministry. The job description issued by Lambeth Palace in May, states that the adviser to the Archbishop on the Anglican Communion, will “serve and support the Archbishop in all matters relating to his Anglican Communion responsibilities” while ensuring that “the complex array of Communion-related work of colleagues in support of the Archbishop is properly integrated”.