The Holy Name of Jesus Cathedral is the principal Catholic church of the southern highlands and the seat of one of Madagascar's five Catholic archdioceses. The building sits in the lower town, off the main commercial drag, and is approached up a flight of steps that gives some sense of the local hierarchy — Catholicism arrived in this part of Madagascar with French missionaries in the 19th century and quickly took hold.
The interior is plain and quiet. Outside service times it is usually open for visitors; cover shoulders and remove hats as a matter of courtesy.