16/03/2026
Pope Leo XIV has appointed Bishop Thulani Victor Mbuyisa of South Africa’s Catholic Diocese of Kokstad as the Apostolic Administrator of the country’s Mthatha Diocese.
The announcement was made by the Apostolic Nuncio in South Africa, Archbishop Henryk Jagodziński, during his address at the Episcopal installation of Archbishop Sithembele Anton Sipuka of the Catholic Archdiocese of Cape Town. The installation took place on Saturday, March 14, at GrandWest Arena in Goodwood.
Archbishop Sipuka had served as the Local Ordinary of Mthatha Diocese since May 2008 before Pope Leo XIV transferred him to Cape Town on January 9.
Born in February 1973 in South Africa’s KwaZulu-Natal Province within the territory of the Catholic Archdiocese of Durban, Bishop Mbuyisa joined the Congregation of Mariannhill Missionaries in 1992.
The South African member of the Congregation of Mariannhill Missionaries (CMM) completed his philosophical and theological formation at St. Joseph’s Theological Institute of Cedara in the Archdiocese of Durban before being ordained a priest in March 2000.
During his priestly ministry, Bishop Mbuyisa served in a number of pastoral and academic roles, including as Parish Vicar of St. Michael’s Mission, Chaplain at Mangosuthu University of Technology, and St. Francis College in Mariannhill.
The holder of a Licentiate in Canon Law from St. Paul University in Ottawa, Canada, also served as Superior and formator at the Nivard House Formation House in Nairobi (2007-2010); Provincial Superior of CMM in East Africa, based in Nairobi (2010); Councilor and Secretary General (2010-2012), and Vicar General and Procurator of his Congregation (2012-2016), among other responsibilities.
On 24 June 2025, Pope Leo XIV appointed him a member of the Vatican Dicastery for Institutes of Consecrated Life and the Societies of Apostolic Life (ICLSAL).
Reacting to his appointment, Bishop Mbuyisa lauded Pope Leo XIV for including a good number of Church leaders with African links in his appointment.
He described the Papal appointment as an opportunity to serve “the Universal Church and in particular the Consecrated women and men.”
“I am also delighted to note that several members of this consultative body will come from Africa,” Bishop Mbuyisa said, referring to the four other African appointees whose appointments the Vatican made public.
Bishop Mbuyisa reflected on his participation in the ICLSAL Dicastery, whose Prefect is Sr. Simona Brambilla, saying, “I hope I can make my own contribution.”
The Local Ordinary of Kokstad Diocese, since June 2022, clarified that the nature of his service as a member of the Vatican entity primarily entails participating in meetings on “particular policies or directions that the Dicastery is taking following the leadership of the Prefect.”
“I do know to be a Consultor it means you're one of those who are called into meetings, only for meetings and then coming back, so I’m not going anywhere,” the South African CMM Bishop said about the Vatican Dicastery that exists “to promote, encourage and regulate the practice of the evangelical counsels, how they are lived out in the approved forms of consecrated life and all matters concerning the life and activity of Societies of Apostolic Life throughout the Latin Church.”
As Apostolic Administrator, Bishop Mbuyisais is expected to guide the Diocese of Mthatha during the period in which the See remains vacant, ensuring continuity in pastoral care and ecclesial governance until a new Bishop is appointed.
https://www.aciafrica.org/news/20673/pope-leo-xiv-appoints-bishop-of-kokstad-diocese-apostolic-administrator-of-mthatha-diocese
