Pope Leo XIV Begins Four-Nation Visit to Africa Starting April 13

Pope Leo XIV will begin a four-nation visit to Africa on April 13, 2026, as his fourth foreign trip since becoming pontiff in 2025. The trip covers Algeria, Cameroon, Angola, and Equatorial Guinea, according to the Holy See. The main themes of the trip include peace, migration, the environment, young people, and the family, as reported by the Holy See.

Pope Leo XIV is scheduled to deliver 25 speeches in four languages: French, English, Portuguese, and Spanish. The visit highlights the growth of the Catholic Church in Africa, which had fewer than 1 million Catholics in 1910 and an estimated 288 million in 2024.

Visit to Algeria The trip starts in Algeria from April 13 to 15.

Algeria has a population of 46 to 48 million, with 8,740 Catholics, according to the Vatican's 2025 yearbook, the Annuario Pontificio. Pope Leo XIV plans to visit Annaba, the ancient city of Hippo, associated with St. Augustine, a doctor of the church.

As the first pontiff from the Augustinian Order, Pope Leo XIV will emphasize interfaith dialogue during a visit to the Great Mosque of Algiers, which can accommodate up to 120,000 people. Algerian authorities closed 47 churches of the Protestant Church of Algeria, according to the 2026 Open Doors World Watch List, which ranked Algeria 20th for Christian persecution.

Authorities rejected a Vatican request to visit the Tibhirine monastery in Médéa, site of the 1996 kidnapping and killing of seven French Trappist monks by Islamic extremists during the civil war, as reported by the Associated Press.

Stops in Cameroon and Angola From April 15 to 18, Pope Leo XIV will visit Cameroon, where Catholics comprise 30% to 35% of the population of about 30 million, according to Catholic EWTN.

He will preside over five public Masses and addresses in three cities and meet vulnerable children at the Ngul Zamba Orphanage in Yaoundé. A government census indicates that 56% of Angola's population identifies as Catholic.

In Angola, the pope is expected to visit the town of Muxima, where he will pray at a shrine to the Virgin Mary, known locally as "Mama Muxima," or "mother of the heart." This is said to be the spiritual home for many Angolans, drawing over 2 million pilgrims every year.

While the trip does not include the continent’s most populous nation of Nigeria — where thousands of the faithful have been killed for their religious beliefs — invitations from host governments are required for papal visits. The Nigerian government did not respond to requests for comment.