Pope Francis Accepts Retirement of Catholic Bishop in Madagascar, Appoints Successor

As a Priest, the Bishop-elect has served in various capacities, including Parish Vicar of the Cathedral of St. Vincent De Paul; Vice-Rector and Rector of St. John the Baptist Major Seminary, and Diocesan accompanier of Seminarians.

The holder of Licentiate in Theology at the Catholic Institute of Madagascar (I.C.M.) in Antananarivo Archdiocese also served as the President of the Diocesan Confraternity and member of the Diocesan Commission for Catechesis.

He served as the Vice-Director of the Diocesan Radio; member of the College of Consultors; a Vicar General, and a Diocesan Administrator of the Ihosy Catholic Diocese.

Outside the country, the Bishop-elect has served as the Hospital Chaplain in Freiburg in Germany and Assistant Parish Priest of Sainte-Thérèse, Friborg in Switzerland.

At the time of his appointment as the Bishop of Tôlagnaro Diocese, Mons. Razafitsimialona was serving as lecturer and bursar at St. John the Baptist Major Seminary, Vohitsoa, in the Catholic Diocese of Antsirabé.

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Once he is Consecrated Bishop, the Malagasy-born Priest will serve as the sixth Local Ordinary of the 45,000 square-kilometer Diocese that was erected in January 1896.

The Diocese has a population of 126,770 Catholics, representing 9 percent of the total population in the Diocese, according to 2020 statistics. The Diocese is part of the Ecclesiastical Province of Toliara.

Silas Mwale Isenjia is a Kenyan journalist with a great zeal and interest for Catholic Church related communication. He holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Linguistics, Media and Communication from Moi University in Kenya. Silas has vast experience in the Media production industry. He currently works as a Journalist for ACI Africa.