Pope Francis, during his 40th Apostolic Journey to Africa, told people in the Democratic Republic of the Congo that peace can be achieved, but only if people work for it.

“Even in the East, peace is possible! Let us believe this! And let us work for it, without delegating it to others,” he said, according to Vatican News. 

The Vatican shared another part of his message in a Feb. 2 tweet: “Overcome evil with good. May you be the ones who transform society, the ones who turn evil into good, hatred into love, war into peace." 

Pope Francis earlier this week began his 40th Apostolic Journey.

Before embarking on the trip, on Jan. 30, he tweeted: “I greet with affection those beloved peoples who await me. I ask everyone, please, to accompany this journey with their prayers.” 

This is his fifth trip to Africa, but it is the first papal visit to Kinshasa, the capital of the Democratic Republic of the Congo, since 1985, when Pope John Paul II traveled there. Pope Francis will close his journey with a trip to South Sudan, and then he will return home Friday.

Pope Francis met with President Felix Tshisekedi and the two addressed around 1,000 individuals, including political and religious leaders, on Wednesday. The pope condemned the violence that has claimed the lives of millions over the last two decades, according to Anadolu Agency. The Eastern Congo has been fraught with danger during that time, displacing and killing untold numbers of people. Pope Francis also met with thousands of young people, as well as with victims of the violence in Eastern Congo.

Also on Wednesday, more than 1 million faithful visited N’Dolo, Kinshasa’s secondary airport, to hear Pope Francis as he presided over an open-air liturgy. Anadolu Agency reported that Kinshasa Province Police Commander Sylvano Kasongo provided security by deploying 7,500 police personnel at the airport. 

Pope Francis has visited 60 countries since he became the Catholic Church’s leader. He has visited other countries in Africa, including Kenya, Uganda and the Central African Republic in 2015, Egypt in 2017, Morocco in March 2019. He also visited Mozambique, Madagascar, and Mauritius in September 2019, according to Vatican News. 

About 20% of the world's Catholic population calls Africa home, and the continent has seen an increase in the number of practicing Catholics in recent years, according to Vatican News.