United Nations refugee chief Filippo Grandi praised Pope Francis' 'holistic' approach to global displacement during a private Audience at the Vatican on Friday and said UNHCR wants to boost cooperation with the Holy See in assisting asylum-seekers and refugees.
“Pope Francis is the voice of the most marginalized people: refugees, the forcibly displaced and migrants”, Grandi said, according to UNHCR statement.
“His tireless commitment has made a concrete difference in the response to those who are fleeing major humanitarian crises, by providing a safe place and effective assistance for integrating the most vulnerable in receiving countries”, Grandi added.
Francis gave Grandi a signed copy of his message for the celebration of the 54th World Day of Peace, sharing his concern over the scale of current global humanitarian emergencies. More than 80 million people are forced to flee conflict, persecution and violence, with the poorest countries bearing the brunt of the world’s refugee crisis, the statement said.
UNHCR is looking forward to extending its existing partnership with the Vatican in line with the objectives of the Global Compact on Refugees, which aims at sharing responsibility with those countries hosting and supporting the largest numbers of displaced people, the statement concluded.
