Pope Francis is visiting the Democratic Republic of the Congo and South Sudan this week to deliver a message of peace and reconciliation to two countries hit by the conflict.

The pontiff will start his trip on Tuesday in the Congolese capital Kinshasa, where he will stay until Friday before heading to Juba, the capital of South Sudan.

The leaders of the Anglican Church and the Church of Scotland will join the pope on the second leg of the trip.

The six-day trip was originally planned for July 2022 but was postponed after Francis suffered problems with his knee, which have recently forced him to use a wheelchair.

The trip will be Francis’s 40th abroad since he was elected the head of the Catholic Church in 2013. It will be his fifth visit to Africa.

You can see a map of the countries that Pope Francis visited here.

Photo: MTI/EPA-ANSA/Telenews