The Catholic Church in Kenya has responded to concerns that the country's only cardinal will not be participating in the election of the next pope because he had not been asked to attend.

Following Pope Francis' death last month, senior Catholic leaders, known as cardinals, who are younger than 80, are eligible to elect his successor.

They are due to begin meeting in the Vatican on Wednesday, but Kenyan Cardinal John Njue, 79, was quoted in a Kenyan newspaper saying that he had not been invited and he did not know why.

Catholic officials in Kenya later said that he had been invited but was not able to go because of ill health.

"Although [the cardinal] is eligible to participate and was officially invited... owing to his current health condition [he] will be unable to travel to Rome," a statement signed by Archbishop Philip Anyolo said.

"Let us also continue to pray for the good health of His Eminence John Cardinal Njue."

The archbishop did not explain the health issues further.

Tuesday's statement by the Nairobi archdiocese noted that it was reacting to concerns over Cardinal Njue's participation and "various enquiries" about whether he would be at the cardinals' meeting, known as a conclave.

The Daily Nation newspaper had quoted him as saying that he had not been invited adding that "it is not because of health... I don't know really... it's difficult to comment about it".

Cardinal Njue was the Archbishop of Nairobi from 2007 until his retirement in 2021.

He was appointed a cardinal in 2007 by Pope Benedict XVI, becoming the second cardinal to have come from the country.

He and Spain's Cardinal Antonio Cañizares, 79, are the only cardinals who will not be participating in the papal vote out of the 135 who are eligible.

A two-thirds majority, or at least 89 of them, are required to elect the new pontiff and successor of Pope Francis to lead the world's 1.4 billion Catholics.