___________________________________________________________   
      
    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".   
      
   ___________________________________________________________   
      
    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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   www.visnews.org and www.vatican.va   
      
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   --- MPost/386 v1.21   
    * Origin: Sursum Corda! BBS=Huntsville AL=bbs.sursum-corda.com (1:396/45)