Ugandan priest appointed bishop of South African diocese

A Ugandan Roman Catholic cleric has been appointed Bishop of Catholic Diocese of Aliwal in South Africa.

The news of his appointment was published in Rome, South Africa on Friday afternoon, according to a communication by the South African Apostolic Nuncio Archbishop Peter B. Wells. 

“I have the honour to inform you that His Holiness Pope Francis has appointed you as the Bishop of the Diocese of Aliwal... In accordance with Can. 379, from the day of the official announcement of your appointment as the Bishop of Aliwal, you have three months to be ordained and to take possession of this new office,” the communication reads in part.

The communication was also published in Vatican press confirming the appointment.

Bishop-elect Joseph Kizito was born in Wakaliga, Kampala, in the Archdiocese of Kampala, on July 2, 1967.

He studied philosophy at Saint Augustine’s Major Seminary in Roma, Lesotho, and Theology at Saint John Vianney, Pretoria, South Africa.

He was ordained priest on September 27, 1997, and incardinated in the Diocese of Aliwal.

Until his appointment, Msgr. Joseph Kizito has been the Vicar General for the Diocese of Aliwal North and parish priest of Aliwal North Cathedral Parish, in the Ecclesiastical province of Eastern Cape.

Previously, he served as parish vicar of the Saint Francis Xavier parish (1997-1998), parish priest of Saint Augustine’s parish in Dordrecht (1998-2003) and parish priest of Sterkspruit Catholic Church (2003-2013).

 He has been the parish priest of Aliwal Cathedral since 2013.

The Catholic Diocese of Aliwal North has been Vacant since the resignation of Bishop Michael Wüstenberg in 2017.

The Diocese of Aliwal was established in 1923 as an ecclesiastical territory entrusted to the Congregation of the Priests of the Sacred Heart.

It was formerly known as the Gariep Prefecture. In 1936, the prefecture became a vicariate and became known as the Aliwal Vicariate.

It was founded as a diocese in 1951, but in 1953 the Western portion of the Diocese was detached and became the Prefecture of De Aar.

The diocese comprises the municipalities of Inkwanca, Gariep, Kopanong-Xhariep, Maletswai, Senqu and Ukhahlamba. It has two parishes, 3 missions and 12 priests.