Peter Turkson, Ghanaian cardinal
Peter Kodwo Appiah Turkson is a Ghanaian cardinal of the Catholic Church. He was president of the Pontifical Council for Justice and Peace from 24 October 2009 to 1 January 2017. Pope Francis named him to a five-year term as the first Prefect of the Dicastery for the Promotion of Integral Human Development, which began operations on 1 January 2017, a post he held until 23 December 2021. The Dicastery was the consolidation of several areas under one administration including, environment, ecology, ethics, dignity of all people, poverty, and economics.
He previously served as Archbishop of Cape Coast. He was made a cardinal by Pope John Paul II in 2003, and is widely regarded as papabile, that is, a candidate for election to the papacy. The Tablet has described him as "one of Africa's most energetic church leaders". Turkson speaks English, Fante, French, Italian, German, and Hebrew, in addition to understanding Latin and Greek.