Pope Francis has announced the names of 17 new Cardinals that he will appoint next month.<br /><br /> They reflect his desire to re-pivot the Catholic church towards Asia, Africa and Latin America and 13 are under 80, meaning they’ll be eligible to vote for the next pope.<br /><br /> The Central African Republic, Bangladesh, Papua New Guinea, Malaysia and Lesotho will all have a cardinal for the first time.<br /><br /> Last year the pope visited impoverished Central African Republic where Muslim and Christian militias are at war with each other and urged them to seek reconciliation.<br /><br /> Francis also announced that the current Vatican ambassador in Syria, Italian Archbishop Mario Zenari, would be made a Cardinal but remain in his post to show the Church’s concern for “beloved and martyred Syria” – an allusion to the devastating civil war there.<br /><br /> Naming new cardinals is one of the biggest powers a pope has, allowing him to change the leader of a church which has one point two billion members.<br />
