Bishop Benjamin Marc Balthason Ramaroson of Farafangana, Madagascar, was named archbishop of Antsiranana.
The 58-year-old archbishop-designate is a member of the Congregation of the Mission.
The Archdiocese of Antsiranana has a population of nearly 1.5 million, with close to 600,000 Catholics. They are served by just 65 priests and some 180 religious.
Archbishop Ramaroson succeeds Archbishop Michel Melo who resigned for reasons of age.
The island nation of Madagascar, off the southeast coast of Africa, is about 41% Christian. Just over half of the population professions indigenous beliefs and 7% is Muslim.
