[ACNS, by Gavin Drake] The Bishop of Makamba, the Rt Revd Martin Blaise Nyaboho, has been elected as the fourth Archbishop and Primate of the Anglican Church of Burundi. Bishop Martin will succeed Archbishop Bernard Ntahoturi, who has led the church since 2005, when he is installed on 21 August.

The 61-year-old bishop, a former member of the Anglican Consultative Council (2005 to 2009) was baptized in 1965 and confirmed in July 1969. He was ordained a deacon in 1985 and a priest four years later. He was consecrated in 1997, becoming the first Bishop of Makamba.

His theological education began at the Mweya Bible Institute and Matana Theological School in Burundi and continued at the Kenya Highlands Bible College (now known as the Kenya Highlands Evangelical University) and the Asbury University College in Wilmore, Kentucky, in the US. He has also studied at the Haggai Institute Leadership Training in Singapore and the Panzi Development Training Centre in what was Zaire (now the Democratic Republic of Congo).

Before becoming a bishop, Martin Nyaboho served in a variety of roles, including as a teacher at Matana Bible School, and as a Christian literature and Bible translator for Scripture Union and the Bible Society.

He has participated in a number of local and international conferences on social transformation, leadership, peace-building and reconciliation, and on sustainability of the Anglican Church.

The Archbishop-elect of Burundi, the Rt Revd Martin Blaise Nyaboho.
Photo: Christian Aid

And he has contributed to good governance in Burundi serving as vice president and then president of the Provincial Electoral Independent Commission for the national elections in 2010 and 2015.

Martin and his wife Emilienne have eight children: six girls and two boys.

The current Primate of Burundi, the Most Revd Bernard Ntahoturi, said: “The Province of the Anglican Church of Burundi appreciates all the prayers and support from partners, friends and family.”