VATICAN CITY:,The progress of Africa depends on the promotion of aid programs that help Africans become protagonists of their own development, Pope John Paul II said here on Friday.

"Today more than ever, if the peoples of Africa are to be free of poverty and bloody struggles that do not cease to wound their land, it is necessary to continue to contribute aid to their populations," the Pope added.

There was need to respond to their fundamental needs and, especially help them to become the first protagonists of their development.’’ There was need for an awareness of their civic and political responsibilities.’’.

The Pontiff made his appeal at the conclusion of a meeting with French bishops of the ecclesiastical province of Besançon and the Archdiocese of Strasbourg, who were ending their five-yearly visit to Rome. Aid to Africa has been a particular concern of the Church in France for centuries.