AMECEA: “I have come to add another stone in building AMECEA,” says new Secretary General
Very Rev. Anthony Makunde, AMECEA Secretary General
He is soft-spoken but very eloquent and carries himself in a quiet demeanour, often in a black cassock. He says that his background is pastoral and formation, therefore it will take him a while to get used to the office dress code at AMECEA Secretariat. His vision is to help build the AMECEA as envisioned by the Association’s founding father.
“I don’t have specific expectations as I begin my mandate here at AMECEA, rather avail myself to fulfil the expectations of the founding fathers of AMECEA,” says Rev. Fr. Anthony Makunde, the new AMECEA Secretary General who has joined the Secretariat last week to begin his mandate.
“I know AMECEA is a mature institution. I was in CUEA during the celebrations of the Golden Jubilee so I was part and parcel of the community that was grateful to God for the fruits that AMECEA has already gained for the past 50 years, and now I see myself as having been given a challenge of yet adding another stone in building AMECEA after the celebrations of the Golden Jubilee,” Fr. Makunde said.
Born in Moshi Tanzania in 1963 where he also did his primary and secondary education, Fr. Makunde belongs to the Diocese of Mbeya, which is in the Southern Part of Tanzania. He was ordained a priest in 1991 and was assigned to Vwawa Parish as an Assistant Parish Priest. There Fr Anthony served until 1993 when his Bishop transferred him to work at the Postulancy and Noviciate Formation House of the Diocesan Congregation called Our Lady Queen of Apostles of Mbeya, as Spiritual Director to the young women who were aspiring to become nuns. While there, he also served as Curate of Mlowo Parish, which is located near the Formation House.
In 1998, Fr. Makunde went to Rome for further studies where he did his Licentiate in Ecumenical Theology for two years then proceeded for Doctorate at St. Thomas University-Angelicum. Upon completion of his studies, he went back to his diocese in 2003 and his Bishop appointed him Parish Priest of Mlowo Parish, as well as Spiritual Director at the same formation house where he previously was, on top of the responsibility of being Diocesan Director of Ecumenism.
In 2004, Tanzania Episcopal Conference (TEC) appointed him Director of Ecumenism, though he moved from the Parish to the Secretariat in 2005. During the same year, TEC appointed him Acting Secretary General of the Conference following the appointment of the then incumbent, Msgr. Pius Rutechura as Secretary General of AMECEA at the 15th AMECEA Plenary Assembly, which took place in Uganda in July 2005. Fr. Anthony Makunde acted under the same capacity until June 2006 when he became Secretary General of Tanzania Bishops Conference.
Fr. Makunde finished his mandate as TEC Secretary General in 2013 and went for a two-year study leave at the University Of Notre Dame in Indiana, USA, where he did Master’s in Public Administration, specializing in Non-Profit Organizations Administration.
When he got back to his Diocese, his Bishop gave him the position he previously held as Parish Priest at Mlowo Parish, where he also continued as Spiritual Director at the same Formation House. His bishop appointed him Director of Ongoing-formation for the Clergy, Religious and Laity in the Diocese – a position that he held until his appointment to AMECEA. At the same time, Fr Anthony Makunde was Director of Education Department of the Diocese of Mbeya, whereby he was in charge of the Catholic Schools and Institutions.
“As many as my responsibilities at the diocese seemed, I was managing well and I was enjoying them,” Fr. Anthony said.
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By Pamela Adinda, AMECEA Online News
