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 Communique from the Managing Board and the College of Auditors of the Vatican
Pensions Fund
 Vatican City, 20 February 2015 (VIS) - The following is the full text of the
communique issued today by the Managing Board and the College of Auditors of
the Vatican Pension Fund:
 "Since for some months, and amplified by press reports, alarming data has
been circulating regarding the situation of the Vatican Pensions Fund and on
the sustainability of honouring the commitments undertaken towards present and
future subscribers, the Managing Board of the Fund and the College of Auditors
consider it opportune to officially communicate the actuarial situation,
assets and income of the aforementioned Fund, as it appears in the actuarial
Technical Financial Statements drawn up by the actuary and the Financial
Statements regularly approved by the Secretary of State.
 With regard to the actuarial aspect, there is a substantial balance between
available resources and commitments to current and future employees, due also
to interventions (approved by the Secretary of State following proposals by
the Managing Board) both in terms of contributions (increase of rates
throughout the years up to the current rate of 26% on the total of taxable
income) and in relation to performance (increase of two years of working life,
raising the age of retirement to 67 for laypersons and 72 for clergy and
persons religious.
 The working Statements also show, throughout the years, the solidity of the
assets and financial structure of the Fund itself. The funding ratio of the
Pensions Fund is 0.95%. From a strictly income-based perspective, the economic
and financial situation of the institution records a gradual increase of
financial and real estate resources both in terms of capital resources which,
from 1993 to 2013 increased on average from € 22,256,196 per year, and in
terms of the upward trend in net profit, which during the last 6 years has
passed from € 23,583,882 to € 26,866,657, sums sufficient to cover the current
costs of pensions.
 To complete the picture, the Fund's assets on 31 December 2014 were recorded
at € 477,668,000. Adding the budget surplus for 2015, estimated to be around €
27,140,000, a net worth by 31 December 2015 of over 504 million euros may be
hypothesised, confirming the real solidity of the Fund, which has progressed
from an initial budget of 10 billion of the old Italian lire in 1993 to over
500 million euros in little more than twenty years".

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 The Holy See at the United Nations: social development policies must address
the spiritual and ethical dimension of the human person
 Vatican City, 20 February 2015 (VIS) - Archbishop Bernardito Auza, Holy See
Permanent Observer at the United Nations in New York addressed the 53rd
Session of the Commission for Social Development on 10 February. He
highlighted the Holy See's concerns regarding economic growth which has led to
new challenges, but has not benefited everyone in society equally. Significant
inequalities remain and many of the most vulnerable groups in society have
been left behind. Without addressing these inequalities, especially as we
transition into the post 2015 development agenda, we risk undermining the
impact of economic growth on poverty and on the well-being of society as a
whole.
 "To be sustainable and beneficial for all, social development must be
ethical, moral and person-centred", he said. "We must be attentive to those
indicators that give a complete picture of the well-being of every individual
in society while promoting policies that encourage a truly integral approach
to the development of the human person as a whole".
 He continued, "It is not enough to have gainful employment. Work must also be
dignified and secure. Investments in education, access to basic health-care
services, and the creation of social safety nets are primary, not secondary
factors to improving a person's quality of life, and ensuring the equitable
distribution of wealth and resources in society. By placing the human person
at the centre of development and encouraging investments and policies that
meet real needs, the progress made towards eradicating poverty remains
permanent and society more resilient in the face of potential crises".
 The archbishop reiterated that the market economy does not exist to serve
itself, but rather to serve the common good of all of society, and therefore
particular attention must be given to the welfare of the most vulnerable. He
added that "the authentic integral development of the person and the
eradication of poverty are achievable only by focusing on the tremendous value
of the family to society", and by adopting a strategic approach towards the
eradication of poverty, "based on true social justice in order to help reduce
the suffering of millions of our brothers and sisters. ... Social development
policies must address not only the economic and political needs, but also the
spiritual and ethical dimension of each human person".

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 Audiences
 Vatican City, 20 February 2015 (VIS) - Today, the Holy Father received in
audience:
 - Prelates of the Synod of Bishops of the Ukrainian Greek-Catholic Church, on
their "ad Limina" visit:
 - His Beatitude Sviatoslav Shevchuk, major archbishop of Kyiv-Halyc,
accompanied by his auxiliaries, Bishop Bohdan Dzyurakh and Bishop Yosyf Milan;
 - Bishop Stepan Meniok, archiepiscopal exarch of Donetsk;
 - Bishop Mykhaylo Bubniy, archiepiscopal exarch of Odessa;
 - Bishop Josaphat Oleh Hovera, archiepiscopal exarch of Lutsk;
 - Archbishop Volodymyr Viytyshyn of Ivano-Frankivsk, accompanied by his
auxiliary, Bishop Yosafat Moshchych;
 - Bishop Vasyl Ivasiuk, of Kololyia-Chernivtsi;
 - Bishop Ihor Voznyak, archbishop of Lviv of the Ukrainians, accompanied by
his auxiliary, Bishop Venedykt Aleksiychuk;
 - Bishop Jaroslav Pryriz of Sambir-Drohobych, accompanied by his auxiliary,
Bishop Hryhoriy Komar;
 - Bishop Mykhaylo Koltun of Sokal-Zhovkva;
 - Bishop Taras Senkiv of Stryi. accompanied by his auxiliary, Bishop Bohdan
Manyshyn;
 - Archbishop Vasyl Semeniuk of Ternopil-Zboriv;
 - Bishop Dmytro Hryhorak, Vescovo di Buchach;
 - Bishop Vasyl Tuchapets, archiepiscopal exarch of Kharkiv;
 - Bishop Dionisio Lachovicz, apostolic visitator for the Ukrainian faithful
of Byzantine Rite resident in Italy and Spain;
 ***
 - Bishop Milan Sasik of Mukachevo of Byzantine Rite, accompanied by his
auxiliary, Bishop Nil Yuriy Lushchak:
 ***
 Prelates of the Conference of Roman Catholic Bishops in Ukraine on their "ad
Limina" visit:
 - Archbishop Mieczyslaw Mokrzycki, of Lviv of the Latins;
 - Bishop Leonid Dubrawski of Kamyanets-Podilskyi, accompanied by his
auxiliary, Bishop Radoslaw Zmitrowicz;
 - Bishop Stanislav Szyrokoradiuk of Kharkiv-Zaporizhia, accompanied by Bishop
emeritus Marian Buczek and his auxiliary, Bishop Jan Sobilo;
 - Archbishop-Bishop Petro Herkulan Malchuk of Kyiv-Zhytomir;
 - Bishop Vitaliy Skomarovskyi of Lutsk;
 - Bishop Antal Majnek of Mukachevo of the Latins;
 - Bishop Bronislaw Bernacki of Odessa-Simferopol, with his auxiliary Bishop
Jacek Pyl.

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