Jean Garnier opened the workshop and expressed the objectives of working to increase standards of living in Africa.

Hugo Castelli described (in a Power Point document in Spanish (available to all) how the Publish What You Pay (PWYP) coalition works as a means for networking with African and northern non-governmental organizations and civil societies. Partenia and Iglesia de Base de Madrid are both members of this coalition whose main objective is to work for financial transparency on a country by country basis to ensure the natural resources of African countries receive a just payment and are not the subject of financial fraud which leaves these countries empoverished.  Intermón Oxfam reports that according to the World Bank, the amount of this fraud is between 650,000 million dollars and 1 billion dollars.

At the Annual Conference of the EN-RE on Friday 29 April, the following elections took place:

Secretariat [5 members]:

• Nevenka Franich
• Hubert Tournès
• Joan Oñate
• Simon Bryden-Brook
• Valerie Stroud [as web administrator]

 Co-ordinating Group [14 members]:

• Henk Baars
• Francois Becker
• Simon Bryden-Brook
• Mauro Castagnaro
• Hugo Castelli
• Pierre Collet
• Nevenka Franich
• Pedro Freitas
• Matthias Jakubec
• Dorothea Nassabi
• Joan Oñate
• Valerie Stroud
• Hubert Tournès
• Gerd Wild.

On Sunday, after an early morning Mass celebrated in the chapel, delegates returned to the conference chamber to complete the discussion of business.

A vote of thanks was proposed to the excellent translators for their sterling work to ensure that everyone could participate fully.   Joan Oñate is shown in the picture thanking them.

We thank our Catalonian hosts for organising a very friendly and productive conference together with most enjoyable receptions at the Sagrada Familia and the Abbey of Monseratt.

Pedro Freitas reported

What WAC - Portugal has been doing since the 2010 meeting in the Low Countries

1. Pedro Freitas began his three-year mandate as IMWAC International Coordinator in June 2010. He attended the large Parvis reform meeting in Lyon, France, in November 2010.

2. The Pope came to Portugal on an official visit on 11-14th May 2010, taking in a pilgrimage to Fátima, the Marian shrine. He drew the usual large crowds and enthusiastic support. Though there were no organised demonstrations against the visit, like in London, one group distributed thousands of condoms to people walking to one of the mass venues, with no hassle. Members of WAC-Portugal were present on tv, radio and press, debating reform themes, appearing to public opinion to be much stronger than we really are in numbers.

3. On July 22, 2010, Father Luis Corrêa Lima, a Brazilian Jesuit working in Rio de Janeiro, and who gives support to Cathlic Gay and Lesbian groups, among other pastoral work, gave a talk on: "To be Church today in Brazil - an account by a Jesuit priest" followed by debate. The talk is on our site.