President Bola Ahmed Tinubu is set to depart Nigeria for Rome, Italy on Saturday following a special invitation from the newly elected Catholic pontiff, Pope Leo XIV, to attend his inauguration ceremony.

The presidential spokesman, Bayo Onanuga, disclosed this in a statement released on Thursday, confirming that President Tinubu will join other world leaders at the solemn mass marking the beginning of the Pontificate of Pope Leo XIV, the 267th Bishop of Rome and the new leader of the Roman Catholic Church.

In the Papal invitation conveyed by Cardinal Pietro Parolin, Pope Leo XIV emphasized the importance of President Tinubu's physical presence "at this moment of particular importance for the Catholic Church and the world afflicted by many tensions and conflicts."

The Pope also expressed a personal connection to Nigeria, stating: "Your great nation is particularly dear to me as I worked in the Apostolic Nunciature in Lagos during the 1980s."

President Tinubu's delegation will include several prominent figures, including the Minister of State for Foreign Affairs, Ambassador Bianca Odumegwu-Ojukwu, and key Catholic leaders from Nigeria: 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.

Pope Leo XIV was elected by the Conclave of Cardinals following the death of Pope Francis on April 21, 2025. The inauguration ceremony will take place on Sunday at St Peter's Square in the Vatican.

According to the presidential spokesman, President Tinubu is expected to return to Abuja on May 20 after concluding his engagements in Rome.