Archbishop Mgr. Joseph Spiteri, Apostolic Nuncio to the Ivory Coast, visits id-Dar tal-Providenza

H.G. Archbishop Joseph Spiteri, Apostolic Nuncio to the Ivory Coast, paid a visit to id-Dar tal-Providenza and had the opportunity to meet up with a number of residents, workers and management of the Home. He had words of praise for the work done by the Home with persons with disability.

Archbishop Spiteri, who hails from Ħal Luqa, was born on May 20th 1959. He was the first born of Ernest Spiteri and Emmanuela neè Cassar.

He received his education at the primary school of Ħal Luqa and at the Minor Seminary. He later entered the Major Seminary of the Archdiocese of Malta and was ordained to the priesthood on June 29th 1984 by then Archbishop Mgr. Giuseppi Mercieca.

After serving for a few months in the parish of Ħaż-Żabbar, Fr Spiteri was sent to continue his studies at the Accademia Ecclesiastica Pontificia in Rome, a training college for Vatican diplomats. Four successful years later he received the Doctorate in the Code of Canon Law from the Università Pontificia of St Thomas Aquinas, known as the Angelicum.

He first posting in the Diplomatic service of the Holy See was in Panama where he worked with the Apostolic Nuncio Archbishop Jose Sebastian Laboa who was later appointed Apostolic Nuncio for Malta.

Mgr. Spiteri also served in Iraq, Mexico, Portugal and Greece. In 2004, he returned back to Latin America in Venezuela. He later spent some time serving if the Vatican’s Secretariat of State. In 2009, Pope Benedict XVI appointed him as the Apostolic Nuncio to Sri Lanka and Titular Archbishop of Serta. He is now Apostolic Nuncio to the Ivory Coast, a nomination he received on October 1st 2013.