The head of the Catholic church, Pope Francis, on Monday, sought the universal ban of surrogacy, which he deems “despicable” because, according to him, the commercialisation of childbirth is aimed at stripping poor fertile women of their dignity.

The Pope made the call at the Vatican in the presence of diplomats and persons who could effect global changes during his New Year address.

“I consider despicable the practice of so-called surrogate motherhood, which represents a grave violation of the dignity of the woman and the child, based on the exploitation of situations of the mother’s material needs,” the Catholic head was heard saying.

The Pope begged for the practice to be banned worldwide because it endangers international peace, emphasising that children are gifts and should never be the result of business deals.

“The path to peace calls for respect for life,” the Catholic head said on Monday.

“A child is always a gift and never the basis of a commercial contract. Consequently, I express my hope for an effort by the international community to prohibit this practice universally.”

Like the majority of European countries, Italy has already made surrogacy illegal. However, in Belarus, Russia, and Ukraine, surrogates are compensated for bearing other people’s children.

Additionally, under stringent guidelines, surrogacy is permitted in the UK and the Netherlands.

Same-sex couples and some women, who, for different reasons, do not or cannot carry pregnancies, resort to surrogacy.