By Paschal Norbert
VATICAN NEWS, JANUARY 28, 2025 (CISA) – Pope Francis has appointed new bishops in Burkina Faso and Algeria. In an announcement by the Holy See Press Office on January 25, the Holy Father named Fr Guy Mukasa Sanon as bishop-elect of the Catholic Diocese of Nouna, Burkina Faso, and Fr Diego Ramón Sarrió Cucarella, M.Afr., as bishop-elect of the Catholic Diocese of Laghouat, Algeria.
Bishop-elect of Nouna, Burkina Faso
On January 25, Pope Francis accepted the resignation of Bishop Joseph Sama from the pastoral care of the Diocese of Nouna, Burkina Faso and in his place, appointed Msgr Guy Mukasa Sanon, who has been serving as the rector of the St. Peter & St. Paul Seminary in Kossoghin, Ouagadougou.
Msgr Guy Mukasa Sanon was born on September 14, 1968, in Toussiana, Burkina Faso. His theological and philosophical training began at the St. Jean Baptiste de Wayalghin Major Seminary in Ouagadougou and continued with a theology cycle at the St. Pierre Claver de Koumi Major Seminary in Bobo-Dioulasso. He was ordained as a priest on July 14, 1996, for the Catholic Archdiocese of Bobo-Dioulasso.
His pastoral journey has included significant roles: serving as a parish vicar at St. Vincent de Koko in Bobo-Dioulasso (1996-1998), and later as a formator and director of studies at the Minor Seminary of Nasso, Bobo-Dioulasso (2001-2005). He completed a doctorate in philosophy at the Université Catholique de Louvain in Belgium (2005-2010).
Upon his return, he continued his pastoral work as parish vicar (2010-2011) and parish priest (2011-2016) of the Cathedral of Bobo-Dioulasso. Monsignor Sanon also served as a visiting professor at the St. Peter & St. Paul Major Seminary in Kossoghin (2011-2016) and as a permanent formator and professor of philosophy at the same seminary (2016-2019). Since 2019, he has been the rector of the seminary, a role he now leaves to shepherd the Diocese of Nouna.
Bishop-elect of Laghouat, Algeria
Pope Francis also appointed Fr Diego Ramón Sarrió Cucarella, M.Afr., a member of the Missionaries of Africa, as the new bishop of the Catholic Diocese of Laghouat, Algeria. Monsignor Sarrió Cucarella has been serving as dean of the Pontifical Institute of Arabian and Islamic Studies (PISAI) in Rome, a position that highlights his deep expertise in interreligious dialogue and Islamic studies.
Born on July 20, 1971, in Valencia, Spain, Msgr Sarrió Cucarella pursued his philosophical studies at the Faculty of Theology in Madrid and studied theology at Tangaza University in Nairobi, Kenya. He was ordained a priest on June 2, 2001, as a member of the Missionaries of Africa (M.Afr.).
His ministry began as an animator at the Cultural and Saharan Documentation Centre in Ghardaïa, Diocese of Laghouat (2001-2003). He subsequently earned a licentiate at PISAI (2004-2006) and served as director of the diocesan library in Tunis (2006-2009). He later pursued a doctorate in Islamic studies at Georgetown University in Washington, D.C. (2009-2013).
Following his academic achievements, Msgr Sarrió Cucarella served as director (2014-2017) and later president of PISAI (2017-2024) . In addition to his work at PISAI, he has been a lecturer on Islamic subjects at the Pontifical Lateran University of Rome and a consultor for the Dicastery for Interreligious Dialogue.
