French-born Missionary in Bangladesh Named New Head of Pontifical Institute for Foreign Missions

On July 7, 2025, Father Francesco Rapacioli, a missionary serving in Bangladesh, was elected Superior General of the Pondifical Insitiue for Foreign Mission (PIME) by the XVI General Assembly underway in Rome, Italy.

The 62-year-old Rapacioli is currently the Regional Superior for South Asia. He has served for many years in Bangladesh, a Muslim-majority country in South Asia. One of his major pastoral initiatives has been the promotion of self-help groups for alcoholics and drug addicts in Dhaka, the capital. He also served for several years in Pune, India.

Rapacioli succeeds Fr. Ferruccio Brambillasca, who has led the institute since 2013.

Born in Paris, France, in 1963, Rapacioli grew up in the Diocese of Piacenza-Bobbio in Italy. After earning a medical degree, he joined PIME and was ordained a priest in 1993. His first missionary assignment was at a seminary in Pune, South India, where he served from 1993 to 1999. He later became rector of the PIME International Seminary in Monza, Italy, from 2012 to 2018. Afterward, PIME superiors assigned him to Bangladesh.

Since 2020, he has resided primarily in Dhaka, where he founded support groups for those battling addiction, offering healing, hope, and transformation.

In Bangladesh, missionaries like those of PIME provide essential pastoral, educational, and social services, deeply enriching the spiritual and daily lives of the people.

PIME is a society of secular priests and laypeople who dedicate their lives to missionary work. Founded by Msgr. Angelo Ramazzotti in 1850, the society currently has around 400 missionaries serving in 20 countries around the world.