New York City, N.Y., Jun 29, 2009 / 21:35 pm
In his remarks at a U.N. economic meeting on Friday, Archbishop Celestino Migliore, the head of the Holy See’s permanent observer mission to the United Nations, asked that the poorest countries be given priority at this time of economic crisis. He endorsed the adoption of an “ethical approach” by those active in international markets and those in political office.
Speaking to the Conference on the World Financial and Economic Crisis and Its Impact on Development, Archbishop Migliore said the World Bank has estimated an additional 55-90 million people will be trapped in “extreme poverty” in 2009, while the number of chronically hungry people may climb over 1 billion individuals this year.
For the Holy See, he explained, there is a “compelling moral obligation” to address worsening social and economic disparities which “undermine the basic dignity of so many.”
The archbishop endorsed proposals to provide the vulnerable with “short-term stabilization measures” and long-term measures to help ensure “sustainable financial flows,” thus reducing the likelihood economic crisis will recur.