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Pope Benedict XVI is traveling to Benin, widely seen as the home of voodoo, on his second visit to Africa which has the world's fastest-growing Roman Catholic population. Tens of thousands of people are expected to welcome the pontiff. Although the number of Catholics in Benin is rising quickly, the majority of the population follow voodoo, which was taken by slaves to the Caribbean. The Pope is also likely to face questions about comments on condoms. On his 2009 visit to Africa, he sparked outrage among Aids activists by saying that handing out condoms was worsening the spread of HIV in the continent worst hit by Aids. Pope Benedict is to visit the city of Ouidah on Saturday, where there is a voodoo museum. Voodoo Day is celebrated as a public holiday in Benin, where 40% of the population say they follow traditional African religions. Some 27% classify themselves as Christians and 22% Muslims, but the BBC's Virgile Ahissou in the largest city, Cotonou, says many of these people combine voodoo practices with either Christianity or Islam. However, local people say their religion has nothing to do with sorcery or black magic, or the depiction of voodoo in Western films. Catholic missionaries first arrived in Ouidah 150 years ago and the city boasts the largest Catholic seminary in West Africa. Some 10,000 pilgrims are expected to travel from neighbouring countries in the hope of seeing the Pope. He is also expected to address the questions of human rights, justice and reconciliation on the continent in an apostolic exhortation entitled The Pledge for Africa.

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DISCLAIMER: The Views, Comments, Opinions, Contributions and Statements made by Readers and Contributors on this platform do not necessarily represent the views or policy of Multimedia Group Limited.