Catholic University Rector in DRC Appointed to Vatican’s Scientific Council for Ecclesiastical Universities, Faculties

Kinshasa, 21 March, 2025 / 7:39 PM

The Rector of the Catholic University of the Congo (UCC) in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) is among the four members Pope Francis has appointed to the Scientific Council of the Holy See’s Agency for the Evaluation and Promotion of Quality in Ecclesiastical Universities and Faculties (AVEPRO).

The appointment of Fr. Léonard Santedi Kinkupu, a theologian and academic, as a member of AVEPRO was published by the Holy See press office on Friday, March 21.

Fr. Santedi has previously served as Secretary General of the DRC’s Catholic Bishops’ Conference, the National Episcopal Conference of Congo (CENCO), where he facilitated  the engagement of the Catholic Church in national issues, including peace-building initiatives. 

The Congolese author with works addressing theology and inculturation in Africa has also contributed to global theological discourse. For instance, in his publication, “Dogme et inculturation en Afrique: Perspective d'une théologie de l'invention,” Fr. Santedi explores the interplay between African cultures and Christian doctrine. 

The Congolese Priest was appointed to AVEPRO alongside Fr. Juan Chapa Prado, professor of New Testament in the Department of Sacred Scripture in the Faculty of Theology of the University of Navarra in Spain.

The other two appointed include Prof. Bénédicte Lemmelijn, dean of the Faculty of Theology and Religious Studies at the Catholic University of Louvain, and Prof. Emilio Marin, Vice Rector responsible for international cooperation of the Catholic University of Croatia.

Established by the late Pope Benedict XVI in September 2007 and linked to the Vatican, AVEPRO has the “duty is to promote and develop a culture of quality within the academic institutions that depend directly on the Holy See and ensure they possess internationally valid quality criteria.”

The Vatican agency “collaborates with all actors interested in the life and progress of ecclesiastical universities and faculties: the institutions themselves, the Congregation for Catholic Education, the Episcopal Conferences, all regional, national and international authorities, and all those who work in the various dioceses of countries in which ecclesiastical academic institutions are based.”

 

The agency also “collaborates with academic institutions in defining internal procedures to evaluate the quality of teaching, research and services, which is done through the development and use of appropriate operational tools”, including “guidelines, questionnaires, databases, information networks,” among others. 

The Vatican agency has also the role of organizing “external evaluation procedures for individual academic institutions and arranges visits to them by experts.”

Additionally, AVEPRO is reportedly “developing guidelines to support the institutions in producing their strategic plan.”