Our Order is taking further steps toward establishing its first missionary presence in Rwanda. This initiative is, above all, a grace and a gift of the Holy Spirit. It is the result of a careful process of discernment and dialogue between the Province of St. Francis of Assisi in Kenya and the Archdiocese of Kigali, Rwanda.
We are deeply grateful to His Eminence Cardinal Antoine KAMBANDA, Metropolitan Archbishop of Kigali, for his warm welcome, openness, and for the official invitation he extended to our Order. We also thank the Guardian, Friar Florent RUGIGANA, OFM, and his community, for their fraternal support and guidance during our visits to Rwanda.
The visit made on December 18-20, 2025, by the Minister Provincial of the Province of St. Francis of Assisi in Kenya, Friar Hillary Omondi RADUK, was a significant milestone on this journey. His visit was made at the personal invitation of Cardinal KAMBANDA. Friar Hillary’s goal was to gain a first-hand understanding of the pastoral reality of the area that had been proposed for a future mission. While in Rwanda, Friar Hillary visited the parish church in Musha, and, in particular, the community in Nyagasambu, a rapidly developing area along the Kigali–Tanzania road.
On January 19–20, 2026, Friar Hillary made a third working visit. During this visit and the one before (December 18–20, 2025) he and Friar Dariusz MAZUREK, the General Delegate for Mission Animation, visited the location where the friars are expected to serve and conducted a series of practical meetings. Talks were held with the Vicar General of the Archdiocese of Kigali, Monsignor Casimiro UWUMUKIZA, and with the local authorities in the area where the new presence will be established, as well as with the Local Pastor and collaborating priests. During these meetings, a preliminary draft agreement was developed between the Archdiocese of Kigali and the Province of St. Francis of Assisi. It will be further refined after some needed consultation with the friars.
The process of opening the mission has received significant affirmation from the authorities of the Order. The Minister General, Friar Carlos Alberto TROVARELLI, approved establishing the Order’s first presence in Rwanda just before Christmas. The friars took it as a true Christmas gift and a sign of God’s blessing on this new missionary endeavor, entrusted to the intercession of St. Francis of Assisi.
In conclusion, we warmly invite the friars of the entire Order, the Poor Clare sisters, and all those close to us, to pray for us. We ask for spiritual support for the missionary outreach of our Order and, in particular, for the new Conventual Franciscan mission in Rwanda, so that it may bear abundant fruit for the local Church and for all the people to whom we will be sent.
Friar Hillary Omondi RADUK
Minister Provincial
Friar Dariusz MAZUREK
General Delegate for Mission Animation
