Pope lines up trips to Cameroon, Angola, Algeria and Equatorial Guinea

Pope Leo XIV will visit four African nations in April, the Vatican said on Wednesday, including Algeria – the first time a pope will travel to the North African Muslim nation.

The Vatican announced a series of international trips in the months ahead for the US pontiff, who was elected last year, including to Spain and Monaco.

Leo's visit is expected to focus on interfaith dialogue.

The pope said in December a visit to Algeria would be a chance to deepen "dialogue and bridge-building between the Christian and the Muslim worlds."

Cameroon, Angola, Equatorial Guinea trips

Algeria is also the birthplace of the fifth-century St Augustine. The pope belongs to the Augustinian order, which was founded in the 13th century.

St Augustine (354-430), one of Christianity's greatest thinkers, came from the present-day region of Souk Ahras and was bishop of Hippo, now the city of Annaba, in the northeast.

After Algeria, the head of the Catholic Church will visit Cameroon, Angola and Equatorial Guinea.

Leo will stop off in Yaounde, Bamenda and Douala from April 15 to 18, then Luanda, Muxima and Saurimo between April 18 and 21, before travelling to Malabo, Mongomo and Bata between April 21 and 23.

Peace and dialogue

The pope is likely to appeal for peace and dialogue while in Angola and Cameroon, where long-running separatist struggles continue cause loss of lives.

The last papal visit to the African continent was when Leo's predecessor, Pope Francis, visited the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) and South Sudan in February 2023.

Before his trip to Africa, the pontiff will visit Monaco for a day, the Vatican said.

The visit to the principality on the French Riviera will take place on March 28 and will be the first papal trip to the city state in modern times.

Spain visit

Leo will also visit Spain from June 6 to 12.

He will first visit the capital Madrid, and then travel to Barcelona, where he will inaugurate the newest and tallest tower of the Sagrada Familia Basilica, the Vatican News website said.

The visit marks 100 years since the death of its Catalan architect, Antoni Gaudi, who was declared "venerable" by the Catholic Church in 2025 – the first step on the path to sainthood.

Leo will then travel to the Canary Islands, a Spanish archipelago off the coast of West Africa, a key point on the migration route to Europe.