Do you already have your Spanish visas for the 2011 WYD in Madrid? If not, hurry up. It is less than 200 days to go before the event and the good news is, Visa Charge is FREE! Presidential Minister Ramon Jauregui met last January 20, 2011 with a delegation from World Youth Day (WYD) and the Vatican, to discuss the collaboration to be offered by the central government in organizing this international event to be held in Madrid this coming August 16 to 21, which will bring together around one and half million people from all over the world.

There are currently 240,000 youth from around the world registered to attend. 23,000 come from countries outside the Schengen Area, especially from Latin America and Africa. According to the usual procedure followed by other countries in these kinds of events, the government has decided to issue visas for the pilgrims free of charge. The issuing of this visa follows the usual requirements for such processes.

During the days of World Youth Day, some 6,000 members of government security forces will ensure the safety of participants. A total of seven government departments are collaborating in the organization of WYD: Foreign Affairs, Labor, Culture, Domestic Affairs, Defense, Development, and the Cabinet. The Defense Department has granted the use of Cuatro Vientos Air Base for the Prayer Vigil and Mass with the Holy Father on August 20 and 21. For its part, the Culture Department is working on various proposals to give maximum publicity to Madrid and Spanish culture among WYD participants.

The meeting this morning was attended by Alberto Gasbarri, Papal Trip Coordinator; Archbishop Renzo Fratini, Papal Nuncio in Spain; Cardinal Antonio Maria Rouco Varela of Madrid; Bishop Caesar Franco, General Coordinator of World Youth Day; Yago de la Cierva, Executive Director of World Youth Day; and Presidential Undersecretary Soledad López Fernández.

The meeting took place during Alberto Gasbarri’s visit to Madrid. Gasbarri has overseen every detail of Benedict XVI’s agenda for his upcoming visit to Spain, and has had the opportunity to meet with various authorities and visit the sites that will host the major events during WYD.

Close collaboration with the Spanish Government Administration
From the start, the response of the Spanish Government Administration (the central government, the Autonomous Community of Madrid, and the Madrid City Council) has been one of close collaboration. To articulate this support, in November 2009 a Joint Committee was created, with representatives from the three public administrations, to coordinate the logistics and technical preparation for WYD. There is also a consortium of support for WYD which oversees awarding tax benefits to companies that sponsor the event, which was officially declared an “Event of Extraordinary Public Interest” in the general state budget for 2010.

Government administrations do not contribute financially, but collaborate by providing public facilities (venues for the events which are so massive that they must be held in public places, sites for hosting cultural activities, schools and gymnasiums for the accommodation of pilgrims, etc.) and general services (security, civil protection, transportation, and traffic coordination, etc.), in light of the general interest of the event, as is customary in other acts of this magnitude.