Category Archives: Press

NEWS

Peter Sutherland, former EU Commissioner, dies at 71

Peter Sutherland died in Dublin on Sunday 7 January 2018 at the age of 71. Former EU-Commissioner and Director of the World Trade Organisation (WTO), Mr. Sutherland was a good and close friend of COMECE since his time in Brussels working for the European Commission. He was a member of the COMECE ad-hoc Working Group on Global Governance from 2001-2005. He was also part of … Continue reading »

NEWS

World Day of Peace: Migration as an opportunity to build peace

In his Message for the World Day of Peace, Pope Francis encouraged to offer «refugees, migrants and victims of human trafficking an opportunity to find the peace they seek». The Holy Father also underlined that political leaders should «by practising the virtue of prudence, […] take practical measures to welcome, promote, protect and integrate» men and women, children, young and elderly people searching for peace. … Continue reading »

NEWS

Tackling AMR, the Antimicrobial Resistance

Every year approximately 25,000 people in the EU and about 700,000 in the rest of the world die because of resistance against «antibiotics». What is this phenomenon? How is it possible? What is the EU doing to protect its citizens? What is the contribution of COMECE to counter it? The resistance against antibiotics, or Antimicrobial Resistance (AMR), is a worldwide growing phenomenon due to an … Continue reading »

NEWS

EP Dialogue with Church actors on the External Policies of the EU

On December 6th COMECE participated to “The External Policies of the EU”, an event co-organised with the European Parliament as part of the Dialogue between the EU institutions and representatives of Churches and religious associations and communities. The event focused on the positive contribution that Churches and Church actors can bring to the development of a more coherent EU external policy based on the rule … Continue reading »

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COMECE Working Group on Migration and Asylum: focus on the African migration to the EU

COMECE Working Group on Migration and Asylum analysed the situation and challenges related to African migration to the EU, in the context of the new EU–Africa Partnership. Held on the 6th of December, the working group gathered representatives of Catholic organizations, experts from Bishops’ conferences and EU officials. The participants examined main migratory trends in Sub-Saharian countries, as well as some of North African realities, … Continue reading »

NEWS

COMECE contribution on Private Investment and Development

With the recently launched European External Investment Plan, traditional development cooperation seems to move from a donor-recipient relationship towards a fair and mutually beneficial partnership. In this context, COMECE has published its assessment and some concrete policy recommendations. In the context of the recent 5th AU-EU Summit and the upcoming EU-ACP negotiations on the future of their relations, the Secretariat of COMECE elaborated a contribution … Continue reading »

NEWS

COMECE Social Affairs Commission: reflection on the future of work

COMECE Social Affairs Commission and Catholic-inspired organisations exchanged with experts and EU officials on the transformative shift undergoing in the world of work. During the two-days meeting, under the presidency of Bishop Gianni Ambrosio, participants focused on the ways digitalisation and other trends are shaping the European labour market and impacting the dignity of workers. Based on the discussion with the invited speakers – including … Continue reading »

NEWS

Abidjan Summit: towards a new authentic mutual partnership?

Political leaders of the European Union met with their counterparts from the African Union in Abidjan to reinforce their partnership and focus on the «Youth» of both continents. Together with African Bishops (SECAM), COMECE followed the 5th AU-EU Summit, a key moment to strengthen the ties between the two continents on the basis of a fair and authentic mutual partnership. In their joint statement published … Continue reading »

NEWS

Eastern partnership: towards dialogue and stronger cooperation?

EU Heads of State and political representatives met with their counterparts from the six Eastern European countries in Brussels to review their partnership. They pledged to strengthen cooperation and to engage in a comprehensive and forward-looking dialogue. The participants of the 5th Eastern Partnership Summit reaffirmed “the importance of inclusive engagement of all parts of society” as key to address common challenges to human security, … Continue reading »

NEWS

Syriac-Catholic Patriarch visits COMECE

A high-level delegation of bishops from the Middle East visited COMECE and met with Christian organisations to talk about the condition of Christian minorities in Syria and Iraq. His Beatitude Ignatius Joseph III Younan, Syriac-Catholic Patriarch of Antioch, together with Mgr. Antoine Chahda, Archbishop of Aleppo, highlighted the dramatic situation of Syrian and Iraqi people, shattered since many years with widespread violence. The two bishops … Continue reading »