On the 19th of June 1963, the Usambara - Digo Church and six other Lutheran Churches decided to unite and the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Tanzania (ELCT) was formed. Today, the North Eastern Diocese is one among the 20 dioceses within the ELCT.

The bishops of ELCT-NED have been:

• Heinrich Waltenberg (1962 - 1963)
• Sebastian Kolowa (elected 1972, consecrated 1974 - 1992)
• Joseph Jali (1993 - 2001)
• Stephen Munga (2001 -)