First apostolic journey organized by Pope Leo XIV is destined for Africa
The first apostolic journey organized by Pope Leo XIV is destined for Africa, the continent where the number of Catholics in the world has grown the most and there is no shortage of priestly vocations.
According to data from the Pontifical Yearbook 2026, released at the beginning of the month, and which includes consolidated statistics from 2024, “the presence of baptized Catholics in the world remained stable at around 17.8%” of the global population, accounting for 1,422 million Catholics.
In Africa, according to the yearbook, there was a very high growth dynamic, going from 281 million in 2023 to more than 288 million in 2024.
Europe is the “least dynamic continent” in terms of growth in the number of Catholics, which results from a “still accentuated stagnation in demographic dynamics”, reaching 39.7% of the population.
In America and Asia, Catholics increase less than the population grows and in Oceania there are also more believers.
“The overall result of these different dynamics, both with regard to demographic aspects and the relative diffusion of Catholics, confirms, for the biennium considered, the growing weight of the African continent (where Catholics go from 19.9% to 20.3% of the world total) and the decline of the European one, whose percentage incidence falls from 20.4% in 2023 to 20.1% in 2024”, can be read in the report.
Although Africa has, in proportion to other continents, fewer local clergy in relation to the number of faithful, the number of vocations has increased.
Worldwide there are 5,525 bishops, 407,421 priests and 52,102 permanent deacons.
“In Europe, there has been a substantial decrease in both diocesan and religious priests” and, “in contrast, in Africa, there has been an increase in priests”, although still insufficient to meet the needs for pastoral support.
Africa has also been the preferred destination for lay missionaries, with an increase of 7% between 2023 and 2024, and is the only continent where there are more seminarians, increasing from 34,924 to 35,710 vocations.
Next Monday, the 13th, Leo XIV begins a ten-day journey through four African countries, in what will be his first apostolic visit organized during his Pontificate, and which includes stops in Algeria, Cameroon, Angola and Equatorial Guinea.
