Vatican City, 27 April 2007 – Caritas agencies working on behalf of millions of the world's poor are calling the eight leaders of the world's richest nations to live up to their commitments on poverty.

Caritas members from around the world will head to Rome for the 18th General Assembly, 3-9 June. Keynote speakers include Nobel Peace Prize Laureate Wangari Maathai and President of the Pontifical Council for Justice and Peace Cardinal Renato Martino.

Meanwhile, leaders of the US, Japan, Germany, UK, France, Italy, Canada, and Russia will meet at the G8 Summit in Heiligendamm in Germany, 6-8 June.

Those leaders made pledges two years ago at the G8 Summit in Gleneagles, Scotland, to increase aid to developing countries by an extra US$50bn by 2010. However, Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development figures show a fall of 5% in 2006 in aid - the first fall in a decade.

Caritas Internationalis Secretary General Duncan MacLaren said, "G8 leaders must live up to their promises on aid. Currently there is backsliding with the commitments made at Gleneagles G8. Caritas wants G8 countries to deliver on promises to increase aid to 0.7 per cent of national income, and to ensure that aid is used effectively to end poverty. Millions of the poor will suffer as a consequence of these broken promises.

"The Caritas General Assembly and the G8 will be more than a tale of two summits, they will be a tale of two worlds. On one hand, you have the leaders representing the interests of the world's rich countries with a combined GDP of over US$30 trillion. On the other hand, you have representatives of civil society working for the world's three billion people living on less than a dollar a day."

The Caritas General Assembly will also focus on how conflict threatens to unravel progress on development. Drawing on advocacy campaigns in Colombia, Uganda, Sri Lanka and elsewhere, as well as the eye witness accounts of many of the delegates, Caritas will be looking at ways of promoting peace through its network. There will be a special focus on the Middle East conflict, as the General Assembly occurs during the 40th anniversary of the 1967 Israeli-Arab war and the occupation of Palestinian territories.

Caritas members will use the General Assembly to look back on the last four years of work and set out a bold plan for the next four. During the General Assembly, a new President, Secretary General and Treasurer will also be elected to help run the Confederation's global operations in Rome.

Delegates will discuss the challenges of responding together to increasingly numerous humanitarian emergencies, to the challenges of human development, and how to turn the network into a stronger voice on advocacy.

For more information, contact: Nancy McNally, CI Media Officer Tel: +39 06 69879752 or +39 33423 44 136

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The Caritas Confederation's 162 members working in 200 countries combine to form the second largest global network of aid agencies, representing a billion Catholics, working on behalf of the poor.

Press conference with the keynote speakers will take place at 11am Monday 4th June at the General Synod Hall.

Press accreditation details can be found on the Caritas Internationalis website www.caritas.org

The new Caritas Internationalis President will be announced on Thursday 7th June and the Secretary General the next day.

Daily press briefing will take place focusing on HIV and AIDS, Middle East, Latin America, Asia, Europe, North America, Africa and Oceania.

Delegates will look at the threats to development posed by climate change, migration and disempowerment of the most vulnerable.

Caritas Internationalis will update daily its website www.caritas.org with features, interviews, information and photos.

Media representatives will be available in English, French, Spanish, and Italian.