Africa: Plenty of Work Ahead for New Pope in Africa

The new pope is the first ever not to come from Europe, and he may have a better sense of the problems facing the rest of world, including Africa. Although the church there is growing, the challenges are huge.

If statistics are anything to go by, then the Catholic Church in Africa does not have much to worry about. In 2011 the number of Catholics across the continent grew by more than 6 million to almost 18 million. Seminars that provide training for the next generation of priests are packed to capacity, and in crisis-torn countries like the Democratic Republic of Congo or South Sudan, the local parish priests often enjoy more authority then government representatives.

In the face of shrinking numbers of clerics in Europe, the African church has even started to export some of its priests. "The face of the global Catholic Church will soon be an African one", Pete Henriot, a Jesuit priest who has worked in Africa for close to 25 years, told DW.

"Quality is needed"

But beyond the numbers, Africa's churches face a myriad of challenges. Plenty of work is waiting for the new man in Rome. "Growth is always exciting but what's really important is quality, not quantity," Pete Henriot says.

Christians are suffering persecution in many parts of Africa

Benedict XVI acknowledged that when he called for an "African synod" and invited 197 African bishops to Rome in 2009 to discuss the church's role on the continent. It was the second such meeting in the church's history, the first was presided over by his predecessor, John Paul II.

In an apostolic letter after the meeting, Benedict noted that the church had a special role to play in addressing the continent's challenges, ranging from poverty and civil war to totalitarian regimes. However he failed to offer solutions. Instead, he saw the church in an educative role. According to him, one of the tasks of the church is to "form upright consciences receptive to the demands of justice."

Speaking out

These words offered little comfort to Catholics across the continent, who are under enormous pressure from local leaders. In the absence of strong opposition parties or a functioning civil society, church leaders are often the only ones who take their governments to task over corruption, human rights abuses or manipulated elections.