On April 15, 2026, shortly before 10:16 a.m. local time, the ITA Airways plane carrying Pope Leo XIV took off from Algiers Houari Boumédiène International Airport. A flight of approximately five hours took him to Yaoundé, the capital of Cameroon, where he began the second leg of his apostolic journey through Africa, which also included Angola and Equatorial Guinea and was scheduled to last until April 23.

Before departing, the Holy Father bid a special farewell. After leaving the Apostolic Nunciature, he briefly visited the Notre Dame d’Afrique orphanage, run by the Missionary Sisters of Charity. There, the children gave him a short performance, and he greeted them personally along with the nuns. Moments later, he went to the airport for the farewell ceremony.

In a telegram sent to the President of Algeria, the Pope expressed his “deep gratitude” for the “warm welcome and hospitality” received during his stay in the country.

A call for unity in three languages

The spiritual framework of this Cameroonian period centers on Christian unity. Leo XIV uses as a guiding thread three expressions that resonate in different languages: “Que tous soient un” and “May they all be one” (taken from the Gospel of John) and “In Illo uno unum,” his papal motto inspired by Saint Augustine. The latter emphasizes that, although Christians are many, “in the one Christ we are one.”

Cameroon, often described as “Africa in miniature” for its ethnic, linguistic, and religious diversity, will be the perfect setting for this message. The Pope will stay in Yaoundé, but will also visit Douala, the economic center, and Bamenda, in the northwest of the country, a region shaken since 2013 by a bloody conflict that has caused thousands of deaths and nearly 500,000 internally displaced persons.

Today’s program in Cameroon

Upon landing at Yaoundé-Nsimalen International Airport, Leo XIV will be received by Prime Minister Joseph Dion Ngute and Apostolic Nuncio José Avelino Bettencourt. Following the national anthems and the introduction of the delegations, he will travel to the Unity Palace, the official residence of President Paul Biya and his wife, Chantal.

There, he will hold a private meeting with the president, exchange gifts, and participate in a meeting with authorities, civil society, and the diplomatic corps. The Pope will deliver a speech following President Biya’s address.

Later, he will visit the Ngul Zamba orphanage, a project funded entirely by donations that cares for children and young people between 18 months and 20 years old. Songs and testimonies will welcome the Pope, who will greet the entire community.

The day will conclude with a private meeting with the bishops of the Episcopal Conference of Cameroon and a dinner at the Apostolic Nunciature.

A journey that looks to the heart of Africa

With this trip, Leo XIV continues his third international apostolic journey, an eleven-day, nearly 18,000-kilometer trek aimed at supporting Catholic communities on a continent where faith is growing strongly. After Cameroon (until April 18), the itinerary will continue through Angola and Equatorial Guinea.

His gestures of closeness to the most vulnerable—such as visits to orphanages in both Algeria and Cameroon—and his insistent call for unity amidst divisions and conflicts have thus far defined the tone of this trip. A Pope who, through words and concrete actions, invites us to look beyond our differences and build together in the one Christ.

A new chapter that promises intense moments of encounter, prayer and hope in the heart of Africa.