Vatican says papal trip to Iraq is 'an act of love'
- Mar 3, 2021
Pope Francis met with David M. Beasley, the executive director of the U.N. World Food Program, which was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 2020.
Repeating a call first made by St. Paul VI, Pope Francis urged a global move to divert money from national military spending and use it to “definitely defeat hunger.”
As the coronavirus pandemic commands global attention, for those working at organizations such as Catholic Relief Services, the health crisis is one in a long list of emergencies staff must tend to in its mission to help the world’s poorest.
Caritas Internationalis, the Vatican’s charitable organization, joined Pope Francis in his call for the debt forgiveness for the poorest countries, while condemning the fact that for many regions “there are two pandemics,” COVID-19 and hunger.
After the U.N. Food and Agriculture Organization projected a drastic increase in hunger and malnutrition due to the coronavirus, a Vatican official called on the international community to work together to combat poverty.
On the international level, COVID-19 is not just a public health issue, but it also is a hunger issue.