Vatican and Africa in the 21st century: strategy, institutional presence and pastoral policy

Authors

  • Yulia A. Nagibarova Academy of Public Administration under the President of the Republic of Belarus, 17 Maskowskaja Street, Minsk 220007, Belarus

Keywords:

Vatican, Africa, Pope Francis, Pope Leo XIV

Abstract

This article analyses the Holy See’s relationship with Africa in the 21st century. It investigates the Vatican’s institutional presence and the demographic and pastoral potential of African Catholicism. Furthermore, the study evaluates the church’s peacekeeping and humanitarian efforts and the role of African clergy in the Holy See’s global papal policies. The paper highlights Pope Francis’ strategy and the potential for policy continuity under his successor, Leo XIV, including engagement with the African episcopate, institutional appointments, and priorities for global social justice. Ultimately, the analysis demonstrates the reciprocal influence between Africa and the Vatican and underscores Africa’s central role in the church’s pastoral, diplomatic, and institutional activity.

Author Biography

  • Yulia A. Nagibarova, Academy of Public Administration under the President of the Republic of Belarus, 17 Maskowskaja Street, Minsk 220007, Belarus

    competitor at the department of economic policy and public administration

References

  1. Matskevich VA. Relations between Belarus and Vatican: a historical perspective. Minsk: Academy of Public Administration under the President of the Republic of Belarus; 2015. 156 p. Russian.
  2. Yarmusik ES. Belarus – Vatican relations: the dialogue for peace. Journal of International Law and International Relations. 2017;1–2:47–56. Russian.
  3. Shnitkova DS. The Vatican’s diplomatic service at the present stage. In: Malevich JI, editor. Diplomatic readings. Materials of the Scientific and practical conference; 2022 October 20; Minsk, Belarus. Minsk: Belarusian State University; 2023. p. 100–105. Russian.
  4. Горохов СА, Дмитриев РВ, Агафошин ММ. Католицизм на рынке религий Африки: факторы конкурентных преимуществ. Христианство на Ближнем Востоке. 2025;9(1):94–109. DOI: 10.24412/2587-9316-2025-0050.
  5. Горохов СА, Дмитриев РВ. Геостратегическое соперничество негосударственных акторов в Африке: Римско-католическая церковь в борьбе за «континент надежды». Ученые записки Института Африки Российской академии наук. 2019;4:70–81. DOI: 10.31132/2412-5717-2019-49-4-70-81.
  6. Захаров ИА. Роль христианских церквей в геоэкономическом и геополитическом соперничестве европейских держав на африканском континенте: ХХ—XXI вв. Ученые записки Института Африки Российской академии наук. 2019;4:82–92. DOI: 10.31132/2412-5717-2019-49-4-82-92.
  7. Philippe D. Bulletin d’histoire du christianisme en Afrique. Revue d Histoire Ecclésiastique.2015;1–2:288–301. DOI: 10.1484/J.RHE.5.105337.
  8. Sarr TA. L’Église en Afrique, hier et aujourd’hui. Présence Africaine. 2017;1:151–159. DOI: 10.3917/presa.195.0151.
  9. Matthew M. Reformation and African Christianity: mapping the transitional movement of African Christianity from the margin of classical reformation to the centre of modern reformation. Missionalia: Southern African Journal of Mission Studies. 2020;1:7–22. DOI: 10.7832/48-1-236.
  10. Захаров ИА, Уланова НС. Мобилизационный потенциал пятидесятничества в современной Африке. Восток. 2022;2:165–176. DOI: 10.31857/S086919080019206-3.
  11. Kgatle MS. An Indigenous force of Pentecostalism in Africa: indigenous knowledge system approach to decolonisation. ERATS: E-Journal of Religious and Theological Studies. 2023;9:538–546. DOI: 10.38159/erats.20239111.
  12. Kgatla ST. Allan Anderson’s African Pentecostalism theology and the «othering». HTS Teologiese Studies / Theological Studies 2023;1:a7904. DOI: 10.4102/hts.v79i1.7904.
  13. Myazin N. Pentecostalism and social and political changes in sub-Saharan Africa. Asia and Africa Today. 2023;10:59–65. DOI:10.31857/S032150750024812-5.
  14. Горохов СА, Дмитриев РВ, Захаров ИА. Ватикан в современной Африке (к 50-летию визита в Уганду папы римского Павла VI). Вестник Томского государственного университета. История. 2022;76:38–46. DOI: 10.17223/19988613/76/5.
  15. Marshall K. Pope Leo XIV: global citizenship in a multicultural global society [Internet]. 2025 [cited 2025 November 3]. Available from: https://berkleycenter.georgetown.edu/responses/pope-leo-xiv-global-citizenship-in-a-multicultural-global-society.

Downloads

Published

2026-06-30

Issue

No. 1 (2026): Journal of the Belarusian State University. International Relations

Section

International Relations

License

Copyright (c) 2026 Journal of the Belarusian State University. International Relations

Creative Commons License

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License.

The authors who are published in this journal agree to the following:

  1. The authors retain copyright on the work and provide the journal with the right of first publication of the work on condition of license Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial. 4.0 International (CC BY-NC 4.0).
  2. The authors retain the right to enter into certain contractual agreements relating to the non-exclusive distribution of the published version of the work (e.g. post it on the institutional repository, publication in the book), with the reference to its original publication in this journal.
  3. The authors have the right to post their work on the Internet (e.g. on the institutional store or personal website) prior to and during the review process, conducted by the journal, as this may lead to a productive discussion and a large number of references to this work. (See The Effect of Open Access.)

How to Cite

[1]
Nagibarova, Y.A. 2026. Vatican and Africa in the 21st century: strategy, institutional presence and pastoral policy. Journal of the Belarusian State University. International Relations. 1 (Jun. 2026), 24–33. DOI:https://doi.org/10.33581/2521-6848-2026-1-%p.