Santo Domingo.- The Apostolic Nunciature in the Dominican Republic has announced that Pope Francis has appointed Piergiorgio Bertoldi, the titular archbishop of Spello, as the apostolic nuncio to the country. In addition to his role in the Dominican Republic, Archbishop Bertoldi will also serve as the apostolic delegate in Puerto Rico.
The announcement of Bertoldi’s appointment was made through a letter, which stated, “Today, His Holiness Pope Francis has appointed His Most Reverend Excellency Monsignor Piergiorgio Bertoldi, Titular Archbishop of Spello, Apostolic Nuncio to the Dominican Republic and Apostolic Delegate to Puerto Rico.”
Prior to this appointment, Bertoldi served as the apostolic nuncio in Burkina Faso and Niger. He later became the titular archbishop of Spello and was appointed as the apostolic nuncio to Mozambique on March 19, 2019.
It is worth noting that Pope Francis accepted the resignation of the previous apostolic nuncio in the Dominican Republic, Ghaleb Bader, who also held the role of apostolic delegate in Puerto Rico. Bader, born in Khirbeh, Jordan, on July 22, 1951, was ordained as a priest on June 13, 1975. He studied Law at the Faculty of Canon Law in Damascus, Syria, and in Rome. Bader previously served as the apostolic nuncio in Pakistan from 2015 to 2017 before being appointed to his position in the Dominican Republic and Puerto Rico on August 24, 2017.