Ellinah Ntombi Wamukoya (1951 – 19 January 2021) was a Swazi

Anglican Anglicanism, also known as Episcopalianism in some countries, is a Western Christianity, Western Christian tradition which developed from the practices, liturgy, and identity of the Church of England following the English Reformation, in the ...

bishop. In 2012, she was elected as the diocesan bishop of the Anglican Diocese of Swaziland and she kept this position until her death in 2021. She was the first woman to be elected as a bishop of the Anglican Church of Southern Africa and of the whole African continent. In 2016, she was listed as one of BBC's 100 Women.

Early life

Wamukoya studied at the universities of

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Lesotho Lesotho, formally the Kingdom of Lesotho and formerly known as Basutoland, is a landlocked country in Southern Africa. Entirely surrounded by South Africa, it is the largest of only three sovereign enclave and exclave, enclaves in the world, t ...

, and

Eswatini Eswatini, formally the Kingdom of Eswatini, also known by its former official names Swaziland and the Kingdom of Swaziland, is a landlocked country in Southern Africa. It is bordered by South Africa on all sides except the northeast, where i ...

. She was the chaplain of the University of Eswatini and of St. Michael's High School, in Manzini, as well as Town Clerk and CEO of the City Council of Manzini when she was elected.

Becoming a bishop

Wamukoya was not initially a candidate to succeed Meshack Mabuza as Anglican Bishop of Swaziland, but after seven rounds of inconclusive elections she was elected by a 2/3 majority of the members of the Elective Assembly on 18 July 2012. She was consecrated on 17 November 2012 by Archbishop Thabo Makgoba, who called it a "a great occasion". No official representative of Swazi king

Mswati III Mswati III (born Makhosetive Dlamini; 19 April 1968) is the ''Ngwenyama'' (King) of Eswatini and head of the Swazi royal family. He heads an absolute monarchy, as he has veto power over all branches of government and is constitutionally immune fr ...

attended the ceremony. The ceremony had been led by David Dinkebogile, who said that Wamukoya was a bishop, "not a black woman, not an African, not a Swazi woman" and "She was to be pastor to all, to men and women, to black and white, to Swazis and all others in her diocese". Wamukoya later admitted that being the first female bishop in the Anglican church bore a great weight of responsibility and it was her responsibility to prove that women were suited to the role, adding "I know that the whole world is looking up to me to see if I will deliver." She visited Ireland in 2015, preaching at the St Macartin's Cathedral, Enniskillen on 25 January.

Death

Wamukoya died of

COVID-19 Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is a contagious disease caused by the coronavirus SARS-CoV-2. In January 2020, the disease spread worldwide, resulting in the COVID-19 pandemic. The symptoms of COVID‑19 can vary but often include fever ...

during the COVID-19 pandemic in Eswatini.Bishop of Swaziland and global environment advocate Ellinah Wamukoya dies from Covid
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References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Wamukoya, Ellinah 1951 births 2021 deaths 21st-century Anglican Church of Southern Africa bishops Anglican bishops of Swaziland Women Anglican bishops Deaths from the COVID-19 pandemic in Eswatini