Cardinal Fridolin Ambongo of Kinshasa (Photo by Stéphane Ouzounoff/Ciric).
Cardinal Fridolin Ambongo, the latest addition to Pope Francis's privy council of chief advisors, is one of the leading Catholic voices on the African continent.
The 60-year-old Capuchin Franciscan has been head of the Archdiocese of Kinshasa in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) for just over two years. But he's no stranger to Church leadership positions.
A moral theologian with a doctorate from the prestigious Alphonsian Academy in Rome ("Alphonsianum"), he headed his Capuchin Order's vice-province in DRC and was president of the National Assembly of Major Superiors before being named bishop in 2004.