An Agreement on the Recognition of Qualifications Concerning Higher Education was signed between the Republic of Lithuania and the Holy See in the Green Hall of the Presidential Palace in Vilnius on Friday, 8 June, the Holy See Press Office reported today. The Agreement was signed by Mgr. Luigi Bonazzi, apostolic nuncio to Lithuania, representing the Holy See, and by Audronius Ažubalis, minister of foreign affairs, representing Lithuania. “The signing of the Agreement is in line with the Convention of Lisbon on the same issue (1997), which is aimed among others at encouraging the mutual recognition of diplomas and periods of study. This recognition - the statement reads - is also aimed at encouraging student mobility and the free movement of higher education students in Europe. Furthermore, “the Agreement fits in with the goals of the Bologna Process, at the European level, which has created a Common “European Higher Education Area” (EHEA), involving 47 European countries, including the Holy See, with the support of several international organisations”. (continued)

Besides defining the main terms and its field of application, the Agreement also sets the rules, the procedures and the instruments to ensure the recognition of higher education studies. “It improves the legal framework for mutual relations between the Holy See and the Republic of Lithuania, already regulated by three Agreements singed on 2000: on co-operation in education and culture; concerning juridical aspects of the relations between the Catholic Church and the State; and concerning the pastoral care of Catholics serving in the Army. This Agreement - the statement concludes - will come into force upon notification from the Parties that they have completed their internal legal procedures.