Church leaders from Northern Ireland have marked the 25th anniversary of the Good Friday Agreement at an ecumenical service at the Chiesa Evangelica Valdese in Rome.

During a two-day trip, Catholic and protestant leaders are expected to attend a seminar at the Pontifical Irish College on Thursday afternoon to explore the role churches and faith leaders play in peace-making and reconciliation.

Representatives from the Church of Ireland, the Methodist and Presbyterian churches in Ireland, the Roman Catholic Church and the Irish Council of Churches will attend the event, organised by the British and Irish ambassadors to the Holy See, the UK and Ireland's official representatives to the Vatican City State.

In a joint statement, the Irish church leaders said the agreement had saved "countless" lives in the past 25 years.

The statement from the church leaders added: "We must remember that the signing of the Agreement was not the end of the journey to peace in Northern Ireland.

"It simply marked the first faltering steps down a very long road to a new, brighter, and shared future…shaped by tolerance and respect for our differences, and a recognition of the need for greater understanding and reconciliation."

The Good Friday agreement was signed in April 1998 and ended 30 years of violence in Northern Ireland, commonly known as the Troubles.

Prior to their return on Friday, the church leaders are scheduled to hold several additional meetings with Christian organisations and attend lunch with the British and Irish ambassadors to the Holy See.