President Tinubu to Attend Inauguration of Pope Leo XIV at Vatican

President Bola Tinubu will join world leaders in Rome on Sunday, May 18, 2025, for the official inauguration of Pope Leo XIV, the newly elected head of the Roman Catholic Church. The visit was announced in a statement on Thursday by Bayo Onanuga, Special Adviser to the President on Information and Strategy.

According to the statement, President Tinubu is scheduled to depart Abuja for Rome on Saturday following a formal invitation from the Vatican, extended through Cardinal Pietro Parolin. The invitation emphasized the global significance of the event and requested the president’s personal attendance amid ongoing global conflicts and tensions.

Pope Leo XIV, who previously served as Cardinal Robert Francis Prevost, will be formally installed as the 267th Bishop of Rome during a solemn mass at St. Peter’s Square. His election by the Conclave of Cardinals came 27 days after the passing of Pope Francis on April 21, 2025.

Highlighting his connection to Nigeria, Pope Leo XIV expressed fondness for the country, recalling his time working in the Apostolic Nunciature in Lagos during the 1980s.

President Tinubu’s delegation will include key Catholic figures and officials, such as Minister of State for Foreign Affairs Ambassador Bianca Odumegwu-Ojukwu, Archbishop Lucius Ugorji of Owerri (President of the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of Nigeria), Archbishop Ignatius Kaigama of Abuja, Archbishop Alfred Martins of Lagos, and Bishop Matthew Hassan Kukah of Sokoto Diocese.

The president is expected to return to Abuja on Tuesday, May 20.