ROME – Gone are the days of the half-million euro Christmas Nativity scene in St. Peter’s Square. The Vatican is centralizing its contracting and procurement procedures in a bid to cut waste, root out corruption and bring the Holy See’s finances into the 21st century.
Pope Francis approved new norms governing contract bids and purchasing in his latest effort to reform the Vatican’s finances, which have grown even more precarious amid the coronavirus pandemic and closure of the Holy See’s main cash cow, the Vatican Museums.
The Museums reopened Monday for the first time since March. But the main source of revenue for the Holy See is looking at a significant shortfall this year given the collapse of the tourism industry that provides a steady