Sarr, who is one of three delegated co-presidents of the Synod of Bishops for Africa, said just because certain countries have determined such policies are good for their own countries does not mean those ideas and practices should be imposed on Africa.

"We as a church and as Africans have great respect for life starting from conception," he said, lamenting the fact that some foreign organizations promote abortion as part of their reproductive health programs for women in Africa.

Cardinal Wilfrid Napier of Durban, South Africa, another co-president at the synod, said funding for HIV and AIDS programs often mandates a certain portion of the money be spent on condoms. Also, approval for foreign aid to promote industry and development may require a government to cut back on education, welfare and health care spending, he said.

"But the most insidious form" of this cultural imperialism is a shift in what determines what is moral, said Napier. It used to be if something was against the common good it was considered objectively wrong and what was for the good of the wider community was objectively good, he said.

"But there is a certain ideology coming in which is what is good for me is good and what is bad for me is bad and that's introducing an individualism that's taking us completely away from caring for others on the basis of some external standard of moral behaviour," he said.

Cardinal John Njue of Nairobi, Kenya, said Africa finds itself in a difficult situation in which it needs aid in order to become self-reliant. But people's dependence on this aid must be treated with respect.

"Anything that comes from abroad, even from the point of view of ideals, must also respect the culture and dignity of the human person," he said.

Napier said outside investors and developers must work with Africa as equal partners. Let the aid "be delivered in truth as real aid, not as something that has such strings attached that you're worse off than you were before you got the aid," he said.

The cardinal also said that one of the many cultural norms inherent to Africa is that sexual intercourse is meant for creating new life, "not so much for enjoyment." But "the imperial culture is saying, 'No, it's for enjoyment,' and pregnancy is almost a disease," he said. This mentality is part of the "irresponsible sexual behaviour" that is the root cause of the spread of HIV in South Africa, he said.

The church works to give young people and adults accurate information about HIV and what to do to avoid it, he said. Specifically, people should not engage in sexual activity before marriage and should stay faithful in marriage, he said.

"But how to get this message across is where we haven't been at our best and we're trying in all kinds of ways to correct that problem," he said.

The Vatican press conference came a day after the Synod of Bishops for Africa concluded its general discussions with a formal summary. In the 20-page report, the defense of the traditional family, the injustices surrounding the extraction of Africa's natural resources and the need to help Catholics be credible witnesses of the Gospel emerged as major themes.