Pope Leo XIV has drawn enormous crowds across Cameroon during a landmark visit to Africa, delivering pointed messages on war, inequality and reconciliation, while preparations are underway in Equatorial Guinea for the final leg of his 11-day, four-nation tour. In Douala, Cameroon's largest city and economic hub on the Atlantic coast, up to 600,000 people were expected to gather around Japoma Stadium on Friday for what is likely to be the largest event of the trip. Many worshippers arrived the night before, staying overnight in the stadium to secure their place for the pope's homily.

The visit has been marked by unusually blunt language from the pontiff, who on Thursday warned that the world was being "ravaged by a handful of tyrants" and criticised leaders who spend billions on war while neglecting human development. Those remarks came during a stop in Bamenda, the main city of Cameroon's North-West region and the symbolic heart of what is known as the Anglophone crisis — a conflict between government forces and separatist armed groups that has killed more than 6,000 people and displaced over 600,000 since 2017, according to the International Crisis Group. The visit carried extraordinary weight: anglophone separatists announced a three-day ceasefire to allow residents to attend the open-air Mass at Bamenda's airfield, a site that itself served as an epicentre of earlier fighting. At Saint Joseph Cathedral, Leo presided over an interfaith gathering alongside a traditional chief, a Protestant leader, an imam and a Catholic nun — a rare display of cross-community cooperation in a deeply divided region. Locals expressed hope that the visit could catalyse lasting political dialogue, with some calling for the release of political prisoners.

Following Cameroon, the pope is scheduled to arrive in Malabo, the former capital of Equatorial Guinea, a small oil-rich nation on Central Africa's Atlantic coast where roughly 80 per cent of the approximately two million inhabitants are Catholic. The last papal visit to the country was by John Paul II nearly half a century ago. Leo is expected to meet President Teodoro Obiang Nguema Mbasogo, who has governed the country since seizing power in a coup in 1979, as well as civil society representatives and the diplomatic corps at the Presidential Palace. Observers expect Leo to address human rights and social justice, while navigating the delicate balance between supporting local Catholics and avoiding the appearance of endorsing an authoritarian government. He will also travel to the town of Mongomo and the port city of Bata before concluding with a Mass at Malabo stadium.

The Africa trip, which has previously taken Leo to Algeria and Angola, underscores the continent's growing importance to the global Catholic Church. Crowds throughout Cameroon greeted the pope with visible enthusiasm, lining streets in colourful fabrics bearing his image. For many, including those displaced by years of violence, the visit offered a rare moment of hope. "Our country needs a lot of blessing, a powerful blessing, so that hope will come to rise again," said Bishop Leopold Bayemi Matjei of Obala.