Pope Francis urges responsible development, environmental protection during Kenya visit

Pope Francis has urged Kenyans to work for peace and reconciliation as a rise in militant violence threatens his first trip as pontiff to Africa.

He arrived in Kenya on Wednesday, at the start of a three-nation tour of Africa. President Uhuru Kenyatta and ululating crowds welcomed him at the airport in the capital, Nairobi.

The Pope said conflict and terrorism fed "on fear, mistrust, and the despair born of poverty and frustration". He played down security fears about his trip, joking that he was "more worried about the mosquitoes."

In a speech delivered shortly after arriving in Kenya, the pope urged world leaders to pursue responsible economic development and to protect nature for future generations.

Francis is expected to address climate issues when he visits the regional U.N. headquarters in Nairobi on Thursday.

"To the extent that our societies experience divisions, whether ethnic, religious or economic, all men and women of good will are called to work for reconciliation and peace, forgiveness and healing," the pope said in Nairobi.

He was speaking at State House, the official residence of President Uhuru Kenyatta, who is a Catholic along with about 30 percent of Kenya's 45 million people. As the pope drove into Nairobi from airport, thousands lined the roads to greet him.

At State House, the pope called for responsible development in Africa and elsewhere. One of his first actions in Kenya was to plant a tree on the State House grounds.

"The grave environmental crisis facing our world demands an ever greater sensitivity to the relationship between human beings and nature," he said. "We have a responsibility to pass on the beauty of nature in its integrity to the future generations."