ROME (RNS/ENI) The world’s Catholic population grew 11.55 percent between 2000 and 2008, from 1.045 billion 1.166 billion, which was slightly faster than the world’s overall population growth of 10.77 percent, according to new statistics published by the Vatican.

The 2010 edition of the Vatican’s statistical yearbook shows that while the number of Catholics in Europe grew by 1.17 percent, in Africa growth was 33.02 percent, 15.6 percent in Asia and 10.9 percent in the Americas.

Catholics in Europe make up a quarter of all Catholics while Catholics in the Americas account for nearly half of the world’s total.

The number of Catholic bishops grew from 4,541 to 5,002, while the number of nuns fell from 801,000 to 739,000. While each priest in Europe is responsible for, on average, 1,440 Catholics, in the Americas the figure is 4,700, and in Africa, 4,800.