Pope Leo XIV has urged young Africans to resist the lure of emigration and focus on putting their skills and talents towards the development of their own countries.
He made the appeal during his visit to Cameroon, where he addressed students and later celebrated Mass in Douala.
The Catholic Pontifd warned that corruption and the flight of skilled workers remain among the gravest obstacles to Africa flourishing.
Speaking at the Catholic University of Central Africa in Yaoundé on April 17, the Pope acknowledged the understandable desire to seek a better future abroad, but said the first duty of the young should be to contribute to the common good at home.
He encouraged students to use the education they are receiving for the benefit of their fellow citizens rather than seeing migration as the only path to prosperity.
Speaking to students in Yaoundé, Cameroon, the Pope said: “In the face of the understandable tendency to migrate, I invite you to respond with an ardent desire to serve your country.”
He also called for Africa to be freed from corruption, adding that this awareness must take root in young people’s formative years.
“Africa, indeed, must be freed from the scourge of corruption,” Leo told the university students and their teachers in the capital Yaounde.