Pope Concludes African Tour With Visit to Equatorial Guinea
Last update: April 21, 2026
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Rights focus sharpens as pope visits tightly controlled state.
Pope Leo XIV on Tuesday arrived in Equatorial Guinea for the final leg of his African tour, where his increasingly vocal defence of human rights will be closely watched in one of the continent’s most closed-off states.
The Central African nation has been ruled since 1979 by Teodoro Obiang Nguema Mbasogo, who at 83 is the world’s longest-serving non-monarch head of state.
A brass band played as the US-born pontiff stepped off the plane and walked down a red carpet alongside the president, while hundreds of worshippers, many wearing T-shirts bearing the pope’s image, sang religious songs and vuvuzelas blared.
“The pope’s visit to Equatorial Guinea is a grace and a great blessing. I would like the pope to pray especially for young people,” said Ana-Marie Sofina, 55.
During the flight from Angola, where he spent three days, the leader of the world’s Catholics paid tribute to his predecessor Pope Francis, marking one year since his death.
Leo’s visit follows that of Pope John Paul II, who 40 years ago became the first pope to travel to Equatorial Guinea, an oil-rich nation of about two million people, most of whom are Catholic due to its history of Spanish colonisation.
Throughout his African tour, which began on April 13, the pope has criticised tyranny and exploitation while promoting peace and social justice, adopting a firmer tone than in the past.
Attention is now focused on whether that stance will continue in Equatorial Guinea, where he is being hosted by a government often accused of authoritarianism and human rights abuses.
Many opposition figures and independent media, pressured by authorities, are now living in exile in Spain.
“The pope is coming for the country’s leaders. His visit won’t change anything for us, because he is not here to persuade the ruling class to consider our suffering over their enrichment from the country’s resources,” said Anita Oye, a tomato seller in the former capital Malabo.
Despite one of the highest per capita incomes in Africa, much of the population remains poor, largely due to uneven distribution of oil wealth.
International NGOs frequently criticise the country for widespread corruption and repression of the opposition, including arbitrary detentions and restrictions on public freedoms.
