Kylian Mbappé, a French football player, says he is “honored” to be visiting Cameroon, his “country of origin.”
“I’m so happy to be here,” he added, saying that people have shown him so much “love”.
Earlier, football fans described to the BBC the excitement they felt about the trip.
“We’ve all been awaiting the moment and its finally here,” one man told the BBC’s Newsday radio programme.
“It’s a huge boost for Cameroon, not just for Cameroon but for the entire continent,” the fan added. “Having him around shows that home is home – you have to come back to your home.”
The 24-year-old PSG striker, who was born in Paris, France, to a Cameroonian father, also met Joseph Ngute, the prime minister of the nation, along with other authorities on Friday.
Since he was a teenager, he hasn’t been to Cameroon.
The sporting star has also been meeting other Cameroonian sports figures, such as MMA star Francis Ngannou, with whom he was pictured smiling.
He also played basketball with former Chicago Bulls star Joakim Noah at Noah’s court, where he was pictured with a crowd of onlookers watching the game. He later played football against the Cameroonian team Vent d’Etoudi FC, Reuters reports.
Mbappé is also carrying out humanitarian work on his trip on behalf of his foundation, which seeks to help young people achieve their goals.