Your Excellencies, distinguished members of the Board of Directors,
Reverend Sisters, Reverend Fathers,
Brothers and sisters,
Peace be with you!

This ancient greeting, still used today in many cultures, found its full meaning on Easter evening on the lips of the risen Jesus. “Peace has the breath of the Eternal One”. Saint Augustine corroborates this assertion by exhorting Christians to forge an unbreakable bond with peace, so that, by keeping it deep within their hearts, they may radiate its luminous warmth all around them (cf. Message for the World Day of Peace 2026). It is with this desire for peace in our world that I am delighted to hold this audience, which gives me the opportunity to meet you for the first time, as members of the Board of Directors of the John Paul II Foundation for the Sahel.

I would first like to thank His Excellency, Monsignor Hassa Florent Koné, for having diligently fulfilled the mandate of Pontifical Delegate entrusted to him by my predecessor, Pope Francis, working in a synodal manner with all the Directors, as well as with the Roman Curia – the Dicastery for Promoting Integral Human Development, the Secretariat of State, and the Secretariat for the Economy, among others – in order to accompany the Foundation together towards a new beginning. I thank you all and encourage you, with God’s grace, to bring about a renewal in the mission of the John Paul II Foundation for the Sahel.

Dear brothers,

After more than forty years of activity, the Foundation has reached a turning point, one characterized also by external challenges linked to multidimensional economic crises at the international level. It is in this context that the revitalization of its mission, in accordance with the current regulations of the Holy See, has become essential. It is in this spirit that the meeting of the Board of Directors last February in Dakar was marked by the adoption of the new Statutes, the election of the new President and the appointment of the new members of the Board of Directors. I thank you all for your constructive contribution to this process. With these new Statutes, the John Paul II Foundation for the Sahel takes on a new form in the continuity of its mission, as an effective sign of the Church’s love for her sons and daughters of West Africa, in the spirit of the solemn Appeal launched in Ouagadougou by its Founder, Pope Saint John Paul II, in 1980.

Dear brothers,

In a world facing complex challenges such as geopolitical tensions, inequalities, wars, issues linked to insecurity and terrorism, political and economic instability, and climate crises—the consequences of which include, in particular, migration flows—the relevance of this Foundation’s mission is clearer than ever! Through its primary aim, it contributes to God’s work, to the protection of our “common home”, and highlights your social responsibility.  Coming to the aid of victims of natural disasters or vulnerable people is indeed a matter of justice before it is a matter of charity. It is in this spirit that I welcome your unanimous decision to maintain the John Paul II Foundation for the Sahel as a Pontifical Foundation, in the spirit of its Holy Founder, in accordance with the new Statutes. As the instrumental legal entity of the Dicastery for Promoting Integral Human Development, I hope and urge you that, in accordance with the principle of subsidiarity, your collaboration in synodality with this Dicastery and the other institutions of the Holy See will contribute to the respect and promotion of the inalienable human dignity of the peoples of the Sahel, through projects of integral human development.

I have no doubt that this new phase for the Foundation will present you with an unknown future fraught with challenges. As Pope Francis said, these challenges are enormous, but together we will move forward in a synodal spirit with renewed commitment, without losing hope. I entrust you all to the maternal protection of the Most Holy Virgin Mary and to the intercession of Saint John Paul II, and I bless you with all my heart.

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Holy See Press Office Bulletin, 9 may 2026