Rwandan Priest Elected to Lead SIGNIS Africa

Kigali, August 4, 2026 - Father Fidele Mutabazi, Secretary of the Information Commission of the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of Rwanda and editor of Kinyamateka, has been elected president of SIGNIS Africa, the Catholic media network representing communication professionals across the continent.

Mutabazi was elected on August 3, the opening day of the SIGNIS World Congress 2026, being held in Kigali from August 3 to 8. He succeeds Father Walter Ihejirika of Nigeria, who led SIGNIS Africa for eight years. SIGNIS is an international Catholic communication organization with members in more than 100 countries.

Mutabazi will lead the network alongside a new executive committee that includes Kenyan Virginia Kabugu as vice president and Father Alexis Ouedraogo of Burkina Faso as secretary. His election reflects his growing experience in Catholic journalism, media leadership and communications.

Born on January 4, 1985, in Gihara Cell, Runda Sector, Kamonyi District, Mutabazi completed his primary education at Gihara Primary School before joining Kabgayi Minor Seminary for secondary education. He later studied at Rutongo Major Seminary, Kabgayi Major Seminary and Nyakibanda Major Seminary, specializing in philosophy and theology as he prepared for the priesthood.

He was ordained a priest on August 2, 2014, at Gihara Parish and initially served at Collège Sainte Marie Reine Kabgayi. From 2015 to 2019, he served at Mushishiro Parish while pursuing journalism studies at the Kabgayi Catholic College. Since 2019, he has served as editor of Kinyamateka, the newspaper of the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of Rwanda.

Mutabazi joined SIGNIS in 2021 and was elected the organization’s representative for the Central Africa region in 2022, subsequently joining the SIGNIS Africa Board of Directors. His new mandate places him at the head of a continental network focused on strengthening Catholic media, communication and professional collaboration across Africa.