BY Obed Kankiriho
Pope Leo XIV has appointed Rev. Fr. Bonaventure Bosco Gubazire, M.Afr., a member of the Missionaries of Africa (White Fathers), as the new Bishop of Kabale Diocese. He succeeds Rt. Rev. Callist Rubaramira, whose resignation has been accepted by the Holy Father after more than 23 years of episcopal ministry.
Born on March 3, 1974, in Kitumba, Kabale District, Bishop-elect Gubazire is a son of the Diocese of Kabale. He studied at St. Paul’s Minor Seminary, Rushoroza, before earning a Bachelor of Arts in Philosophy and Religious Studies from the Philosophy Centre in Jinja and a Bachelor of Arts in Theology from the Institute Catholique de Toulouse in France. He joined the Missionaries of Africa (White Fathers) and was ordained a priest on August 10, 2003.
Over the past two decades, he has built an impressive record of pastoral, academic and missionary service across Africa, Europe and Asia.
He began his priestly ministry in Mozambique as a Parochial Vicar at Nossa Senhora de Fatima Parish in Murraça, where he also directed adult education programmes and served on the council of the Missionaries of Africa.
He later undertook specialised formation in spiritual accompaniment in France before earning a Licentiate in Philosophy from the Milltown Institute of Philosophy in Dublin, Ireland. Between 2010 and 2016, he served at the Lechaptois Formation House in Balaka, Malawi, where he held several leadership positions, including Professor, Dean of Studies, Acting Rector and Delegate for the Protection of Minors. During this period, he also completed a Biblical Formation Course in Jerusalem.
From 2016 to 2020, Bishop-elect Gubazire pursued a Doctorate in Philosophy at the University of San Carlos in Cebu, Philippines. While there, he served as Coordinator and Chaplain of the Friends of Missionaries of Africa, a member of the Council of the Asia Section, and later as Rector of the Our Lady of Africa Formation House Seminary.
Since 2021, he has been serving in Ghana as Dean of Studies at Spiritan University College. In 2023, he was appointed Rector of St. Martin of Tours Formation House in Ejisu, and since 2025 has served as a member of the Provincial Council of the Ghana-Nigeria Province of the Missionaries of Africa.
His appointment was announced on Wednesday at Our Lady of Good Shepherd Rushoroza Cathedral by Rev. Fr. Georges Kwami Kouwonou, who is overseeing the affairs of the Apostolic Nunciature in Uganda. The Vatican described him as the new shepherd of the Diocese of Kabale, bringing with him extensive pastoral, academic and leadership experience gained across several continents.
As he returns to lead the diocese where his vocation began, Bishop-elect Bonaventure Bosco Gubazire is expected to build on the legacy of Bishop Callist Rubaramira while guiding the Catholic faithful in Kabale into a new chapter of pastoral leadership.
