Pope Leo XIV has sent financial aid to Caritas Nepal, coordinated with the Apostolic Nunciature, to address the most urgent needs of the population affected by the floods that struck the country on Wednesday, August 26. The contribution is channeled through the Dicastery for the Service of Charity and aims to provide immediate assistance in food, essential items, and shelter for those who have lost everything.
The natural disaster has left a provisional toll of more than 630 dead and nearly 3,000 missing in the affected regions, including over 500 foreigners. Rescue operations continue, and the Nepalese army has been deployed to help rescue more than 100 people believed to be trapped inside the tunnel of a hydroelectric plant in the country’s most affected district.
The prefect of the Dicastery for the Service of Charity, Archbishop Luis Marín de San Martín, explained that this is an initial aid that the Holy Father wanted to send to address the primary and urgent needs of the population. «It is a quick and concrete sign to convey, especially to the most vulnerable, the closeness and tenderness of the Holy Father, like a caress of the Church that accompanies and sustains them,» he said.
Previously, the Pope had expressed his sorrow over the events in a telegram signed by the Vatican Secretary of State, Cardinal Pietro Parolin, according to Vatican News. This gesture adds to other Church initiatives to respond to the humanitarian emergency in Nepal.
Context and relevance
The Italian Bishops’ Conference (CEI) has also mobilized to provide aid to Nepal, as well as to other areas of the world affected by natural disasters, including Colombia, Peru, and Indonesia. It has decided to allocate a total of 500,000 euros from the 8 per thousand funds that citizens assign to the Catholic Church to respond to the most urgent needs.
Cardinal Matteo Zuppi, Archbishop of Bologna and president of the CEI, explained that this is a sign of closeness from the Italian Church to populations facing major humanitarian emergencies. «The suffering of those who live far away cannot be alien to us: it concerns us and calls us to responsibility,» he noted.
In a statement, the CEI stressed that «reaching out to those in difficulty means recognizing that no one can save themselves alone and that what unites us is stronger than distances.» Through gestures of fraternity and care, the aim is to rebuild bonds, nurture hope, and make peace a real possibility, especially in a time marked by tensions and conflicts.
The aid from the Pope and the CEI adds to the efforts of Caritas Nepal, which works under the direction of the Apostolic Vicariate, in activities already underway since the first hours after the flood. The Church’s local humanitarian organization continues to provide immediate assistance to those affected, while the casualty toll is updated hour by hour.
Original source: www.vaticannews.va (published on August 29, 2026)
