Pope Francis urged Kenyans not to succumb to the sweet lure of corruption, as he addressed a gathering of the country's youth on 27 November. Scrapping a pre-prepared script, the Latin American pope addressed a packed Nairobi stadium with the down-to-earth and spontaneous style that has endeared him to Catholics and others around the world.

"I ask myself, can we justify corruption just by the mere fact that everyone is corrupt? How can we be Christians and overcome this evil of corruption?" he asked the cheering crowds.

"It's not just in politics: in all areas of life, also in the Vatican, there are cases of corruption. Corruption is something that eats inside, it's like sugar, it's sweet, we like, it's easy. And then we end up in a poor way. So much sugar that we either end up being diabetic or our country ends up being diabetic."

On 24 November, President Uhuru Kenyatta reshuffled his cabinet after several ministers were embroiled in corruption allegations. Scandals in past months have ranged from a ministry buying ballpoint pens for $85 (£56) each and probes into multimillion dollar government contract awards. It has angered Kenyans, even though they are long used to corruption sagas where top officials never seem to be convicted.

When he was finance minister, Kenyatta tried to address ostentation among officials, demanding they use smaller cars but there has been little lasting impact. Francis urged those present at his speech not to give in to corrupt practices.

"If you don't want corruption in your lives, in your hearts and in your country, start now, yourselves. Because if you don't start, then the person who's beside you won't start. Corruption, moreover, takes away our joy, it takes away our peace. Corrupt people don't live in peace," he said.

After being welcomed into the stadium with rapturous singing and dancing in the stands, Francis was cheered through the speech, which was also attended by Kenyatta. In Kenya, the target of a spate of deadly attacks by Islamist militants, the pope has called for inter-faith dialogue, said God's name can never be invoked to justify violence, and urged world leaders to tackle climate change. For the second leg of his Africa tour, the Pope travels to Uganda then the Central African Republic.

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