Riccardo Paternò di Montecupo, the Grand Chancellor of the Sovereign Military Order of Malta, has arrived in Kenya for a five-day official visit to the East African nation, underscoring the Order’s expanding humanitarian and diplomatic engagement in the country. 

The February 21-25 visit combines high-level institutional meetings with on-the-ground assessment of relief operations, particularly in Kakuma refugee camp, where the Order of Malta, through its operational branch Malteser International, facilitates the realization of maternal and child health programmes

“The primary objective of the mission is to visit the humanitarian projects carried out by the Order in the country, particularly in the Kakuma refugee camp, where the international relief agency, Malteser International, manages healthcare projects dedicated to the health of mothers and children,” Martina D’Onofrio, the Rome-based Director of Communications for the Catholic religious order and charity told ACI Africa ahead of her arrival in Nairobi alongside the Grand Chancellor.

Ms. D’Onofrio said that Kenya is among 115 states with which the Order of Malta maintains bilateral diplomatic relations, adding that as a subject of international law with Permanent Observer status at the United Nations, the Order of Malta operates through a hybrid identity: a Catholic religious order and a sovereign entity engaged in humanitarian diplomacy. 

Members of the Order have the mission to witness to the faith while serving the poor and the sick, a mandate that increasingly intersects with global displacement, climate stress and fragile health systems, Ms. D’Onofrio’s note to ACI Africa further indicates.

Riccardo Paternò di Montecupo (right), Grand Chancellor of the Order of Malta and Ambassador of the Order to Kenya, Dr. Wilhelm Von Trott zu Solz (left). Credit: Sovereign Military Order of Malta/Martina D’Onofrio

The five-day Grand Chancellor’s itinerary in Kenya reflects this dual character. On Saturday, February 21, the Grand Chancellor’s delegation that includes his chief of cabinet, Eleonore Habsburg-Lothringen, has visited the Order of Malta’s ambassador in Kenya and met local volunteers who support health and social initiatives in the East African nation. 

The following day, Sunday, February 22, includes Holy Mass and a meeting with the Apostolic Nuncio in Kenya, Archbishop Herbertus van Megen, to reinforce ecclesial ties.

The Diplomatic engagement is to intensify on Monday, February 23, with meetings at the United Nations Office at Nairobi. 

The Grand Chancellor is scheduled to hold talks with the Director General of the United Nations Office at Nairobi, Zainab Hawa Bangura; the UN-Habitat Director, Anacláudia Rossbach; and Inger Andersen, who serves as the Executive Director of UN Environment Programme (UNEP). 

Later on February 23, Riccardo Paternò di Montecupo is scheduled to deliver a Lectio Magistralis at Strathmore University, where he is expected to address the Order of Malta’s model of humanitarian diplomacy and its engagement with multilateral institutions headquartered in Nairobi.

The operational focus of the visit is to be on Tuesday, February 24, with a trip to Kakuma refugee camp in Kenya’s Turkana County served by the Catholic Diocese of Lodwar. 

The Kenyan camp, one of the largest in Africa, hosts refugees and asylum seekers from across the region. There, Malteser International manages healthcare projects dedicated to maternal and child health, in line with what Ms. D’Onofrio has described as “healthcare projects dedicated to the health of mothers and children.”

In her note to ACI Africa, the Director of Communications for the Order of Malta has said that the assessment visit is intended to review the implementation of these initiatives and to engage local partners and volunteers involved in service delivery.

The mission of the Grand Chancellor of the Order of Malta is to conclude on Wednesday, February 25, with a meeting between him and Kenya’s Prime Cabinet Secretary and Cabinet Secretary for Foreign and Diaspora Affairs, Hon. Musalia Mudavadi. The encounter is expected to consolidate bilateral cooperation between Kenya and the Order of Malta, particularly in the areas of humanitarian assistance and healthcare.

In Kenya’s Nakuru Catholic Diocese, the Order of Malta partnered with members of the Congregation of the Holy Spirit (Holy Ghost Fathers/Spiritans/CSSp.) at St. Luke’s Catholic Parish to facilitate the construction and equipping of the Good Samaritan Catholic Mission Hospital Tangulbei, which was officially launched on 6 June 2023. 

Founded in Jerusalem in 1048 as the Sovereign Military Hospitaller Order of St. John of Jerusalem, of Rhodes and of Malta, the Order of Malta is today a primary subject of international law as well as a Catholic and lay religious order. Its mission, as outlined in its official communication to ACI Africa, is “to bear witness to the faith and assist the poor and sick.”

Currently active in over 130 countries, the Order of Malta operates mainly in health and social care and humanitarian aid. Together with its 13,500 members, it counts 100,000 volunteers supported by some 60,000 doctors, nurses and paramedics. 

The Order of Malta manages hospitals, healthcare clinics, out-patient units, institutes for the elderly and disabled, and palliative care centres, alongside projects offering health, social care and psychological assistance for migrants and refugees.

From the left: Marinella and Franco DE PAOLI, Deputy Head of Mission/First Counsellor of the Embassy of the Order of Malta to Kenya, Maria Pavlidis, personal assistant to the Ambassador, Wilhelm VON TROTT ZU SOLZ (Order of Malta Ambassador to Kenya), Riccardo Paternò di Montecupo, Grand Chancellor of the Order of Malta, Mr. Adam CAMENZULI (Secretary of Embassy of the Order of Malta to Kenya), and Samuel MATTOCK (Counsellor of the Embassy of the Order of Malta to Kenya). Credit: Sovereign Military Order of Malta/Martina D’Onofrio

Malteser International, identified in the statement to ACI Africa as the Order of Malta’s international relief agency, “provides emergency aid in war zones and during natural disasters.” 

The Order of Malta is presently engaged in over 70 regions in Ukraine and bordering countries. In the Middle East, it assists those affected by conflict, particularly in Lebanon and Gaza in collaboration with the Latin Patriarchate of Jerusalem and manages the only hospital with a neonatal intensive care unit in Bethlehem.

The Order of Malta’s Italian Relief Corps also participates in migrant rescue operations in the Mediterranean Sea. 

According to the statement shared with ACI Africa, the Order of Malta is “neutral, impartial and apolitical.” It maintains bilateral diplomatic relations with 115 states, official relations with four others, and relations at ambassadorial level with the European Union (EU) and the African Union (AU). 

The Order of Malta also holds Permanent Observer status at the UN and is represented in the main international organizations. Since 1834, the seat of the Order of Malta’s government has been in Rome. The 81st Grand Master is Fra’ John T. Dunlap.

This article was originally published by ACI Africa.