ASIA/PHILIPPINES - Appeal for inclusive growth in the Asia-Pacific area

Thursday, 19 November 2015 poverty   solidarity   economy  

Manila (Agenzia Fides) - Do not forget the poor and the last in Asian societies: this is the appeal to world leaders, gathered in Manila for the APEC Forum summit (Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation), by the Church in the Philippines. In the Economic cooperation and search for the well-being of the people "growth must be inclusive", explained Archbishop Socrates Villegas, president of the Episcopal Conference of the Philippines in a message sent to Fides.
The Archbishop hopes that growth includes "those who are forgotten", recalling that "the poor will always be a priority for the Church". According to Mgr. Villegas, reflection should be not so much on "how to help" the poor, but "how to educate them", which means giving them the tools to be the protagonists of their development.
Even Cardinal Orlando Quevedo, Archbishop of Cotabato, asked APEC leaders to "effectively address issues such as poverty and hunger". Themes, even analyzed by the President of the Philippines, Benigno Aquino, who on the eve of the summit had promised that "the poor will be part of the agenda of the summit". (PA) (Agenzia Fides 19/11/2015)


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