Pope Francis Appoints Polish Cleric as Apostolic Nuncio to Zimbabwe

Harare, 25 January, 2024 / 8:50 PM

Pope Francis has appointed Mons. Janusz Urbańczyk, a native of Poland, as the new Apostolic Nuncio to Zimbabwe, and assigned him the Titular See of Voli in Tunisia with the dignity of Archbishop.

The latest appointment of Mons. Urbańczyk who has been serving as Permanent Representative of the Holy See to International Organizations in Vienna was made public on Thursday, January 25 by the Holy See Press Office.

The Apostolic Nunciature in Zimbabwe has been vacant since July last year following the transfer to Colombia of Archbishop Paolo Rudelli who had served as the Pope’s representative in the Southern African nation since January 2020.

Born in Poland’s Catholic Diocese of Warszawa-Praga in May 1967, the newly appointed Apostolic Nuncio was ordained a Priest in June 1992 after completing his priestly formation.

The graduate in Canon Law who speaks English, Italian, Slovak, and Spanish entered the Holy See's Diplomatic Service in July 1997 and has served in the Pontifical Representations in Bolivia, Slovakia, New Zealand, Kenya, and the United Nations (UN).

The Archbishop-elect has also served as Permanent Representative of the Holy See to the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) and the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE).

He has represented the Holy See at the Preparatory Commission of the Organization for the Treaty on the Comprehensive Nuclear Test Ban (CTBTO).

Mons. Urbańczyk also served as Permanent Observer of the Holy See to the United Nations Industrial Development Organization (ONUDI) and the United Nations Office in Vienna.

In one of his messages during the First Supplementary Human Dimension Meeting in the Austrian capital in March 2022, the Polish cleric spoke on the strong link between security and peace, and respect for human rights.

“A peaceful international order is not based on the strength of military power, but on respect for universal human rights and fundamental freedoms,” he said in his message titled, “International co-operation to address violations of international humanitarian law and international human rights law”.