FROM being in the thousands in the past, the number of World Youth Day (WYD) delegates of the Catholic Bishops Conference of the Philippines (CBCP) is now down to less than 300 individuals.
In a phone interview, CBCP – Episcopal Commission on Youth (ECY) Executive Secretary Fr. Ramon Jade Licuanan said their delegation to the 37th World Youth Day is only at 270 primarily due to the effects of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic.
“What we have is the number of official delegates of the CBCP-ECY, which I am asked to lead. It is only more than 200. It is not that many compared to before,” Licuanan said, adding: “Coming out of the pandemic, the airfare costs more now, while many families experienced economic crisis.”
The CBCP official said the ECY does not shoulder the expenses of its delegates to the World Youth Day celebrations.
“We have applicants, who come from well off families, so they finance their own. There are others who are sponsored by some institutions,” Licuanan said.
He, however, did not rule out the possibility that there are other Filipino delegates who applied to participate in the WYD on their own, and not through the CBCP.
“There are some participants who would go on their own to Portugal. And we don’t have the exact number for that,” said Licuanan.
The World Youth Day is a gathering of young people from all over the world to celebrate the youth, serve as a moment of evangelization, and foster a personal encounter with Jesus Christ.
This year’s celebration is set to be held in Lisbon, Portugal from August 1 to 6, 2023 with Pope Francis set to lead the attendees.
