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A year has passed since the Basic Law of the Vatican City State came into force: 7 June 2023-7 June 2024. Pope Francis, issued it on 13 May 2023, on the feast of the Blessed Virgin Mary of Fatima. It replaced the one of Saint John Paul II of 26 November 2000 which, in turn, had replaced that issued on 7 June 1929 by Pius XI.
In order to respond to the needs of Vatican employees, the Governorate of Vatican City State has promoted the opening of a day care centre, an educational and social service that will contribute to the integral formation of children, alongside families.
In view of the expected increase in the number of visitors and pilgrims for the Jubilee Year, an over-the-counter pharmacy, under the direction of the Vatican Pharmacy, will be placed in the Charlemagne Wing of Saint Peter’s Square. Fr. Iulian Misariu will bless the premises during an inauguration ceremony on Monday morning, 16 December.
With a total area of 1,321 square meters—875 of which are dedicated to sales—the new store features six checkout counters, 30 reserved parking spaces, and employs 34 staff members. It offers an assortment of around 11,000 products, selected with particular selection for local products, especially in the delicatessen, bakery and fruit and vegetable departments.
We are delighted to finally announce the opening of the “Tigre-Annona” supermarket located within Vatican City.
Following major renovation works on the historic supermarket inside the Vatican—formerly known as the “Spaccio Annonario”—the new store, with a completely renewed look and an expanded offering of products, is ready to open its doors to the employees of the Governorate and the Holy See.
On Tuesday, October 14, at 5:00 p.m., the official inauguration and blessing ceremony is scheduled, attended by the Vatican’s governing bodies and the representatives of Magazzini Gabrielli S.p.A., the company managing the store under the new “Tigre-Annona” brand.
The store will open to the public on Wednesday morning, October 15, at 7:00 a.m.
This will be the first opportunity to explore the new space, meet the team, celebrate this new beginning, discover new products and take advantage of exclusive offers to the public.
The new store features a modern, welcoming, and functional environment, designed to provide a unique, high-quality customer experience for shoppers, both long-standing and new.
The renovation involved both the interior spaces and displays, focusing on quality, comfort, and sustainability, with special attention to recycling, energy savings, efficiency and environmental respect. The store is now equipped with LED lighting featuring intelligent and adaptive controls, as well as remote management systems for continuous monitoring of refrigerators and cooling systems.
The goal is to offer not only a wide selection of quality products but also attentive and personalized service while strengthening ties with the local community.
The new supermarket management also considers employee well-being, with a new range of services and policies of low prices every day, in addition to a deferred shopping pickup service.
There will also be concrete initiatives dedicated to individuals with specific needs: exclusive benefits for customers over 70, special discounts for large families and advantages for new parents with children aged 0 to 3 years.
The new “Tigre-Annona” also features extended opening hours:
Monday to Saturday, from 7:00 a.m. to 7:30 p.m.
Faced with the recent years’ changing habits in the use of communication and information technologies, the Governorate of Vatican City State, is updating and digitizing its communication.
As part of this process, it has opened an Instagram Account: Governatorato_SCV.
The account will mainly report on the activities of the governing bodies, namely the President, the Secretary General and the Deputy Secretary General, and of each Directorate. The most important information will be transmitted via audiovisual media.
More than fifty thousand smart LEDs from Twinkly’s professional line were used to illuminate the Christmas tree in St. Peter’s Square. The system was designed to deliver a striking visual impact, to be admired by the many pilgrims expected during the Christmas season of this Jubilee Year.
A plaque honoring the renowned composer and organist Giovanni Pierluigi da Palestrina, on the fifth centenary of his birth, has been unveiled on the façade of Palazzo San Carlo in Piazza di Santa Marta in Vatican City.
How can we make Artificial Intelligence worthy of its cost? This is the guiding question of “AI & Faith Dialogues”, an initiative born from the desire to open a space for dialogue between ethics, faith and technological innovation. A moment of collective reflection rooted in the Church’s Social Doctrine, it seeks to explore how AI can – or must – be placed at the service of human dignity.
The collaboration between Exelentia and the Governorate of the Vatican City State continues with the supply of compact electric vehicles for use by the Corps of the Gendarmerie and the Fire Brigade. These vehicles are intended for internal staff mobility, utility activities, and patrol and surveillance services.
"Cycling is as important a sport as any. So thank you for everything you do - you are truly exemplary! And I hope, as you well train your body, your spirit too will also be blessed and that you will be attentive always to the whole human being: body, mind, heart and spirit.
The Vatican Mint proudly celebrates an important international recognition: the 50-euro gold coin “War and Peace,” minted in 2024, has won the Best Gold Coin award at the 2025 COTY (Coin of the Year) Awards, announced on August 21 during the World’s Fair of Money in Oklahoma City, USA.
This success honours not only technical and artistic excellence, but also the strength of the universal message conveyed by the coin: the contrast between war and peace, rendered with great sensitivity by artist Chiara Principe, who has been collaborating with the Vatican since 2013 in the creation of coins and stamps on a wide variety of themes, always with outstanding results.
In 2025, the 75th anniversary of the solemn proclamation of the Dogma of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary will be celebrated. To honor this significant event, the Postal and Philatelic Service of the Directorate of Telecommunications and Information Systems of the Governorate has created a special commemorative issue that brings together art and faith for the collector.
On the occasion of the beginning of the Pontificate of Pope Leo XIV, the Postal and Philatelic Service of the Directorate of Telecommunications and Information Systems of the Governorate of the Vatican City State has issued a special philatelic release composed of two commemorative covers, each adorned with thematic stamps and accompanied by a dedicated postal cancellation.
For the year 2025, the Postal and Philatelic Service of the Directorate of Telecommunications and Information Systems of the Governorate of Vatican City State has brought together, in a single volume, all philatelic issues along with the official postmarks issued during the year.
The international delegation “Journey to Redemption 2033 (J2R2033)” led by Monsignor Mikel Garciandía Goñi, Bishop of Palencia in Spain, spent a week in Rome for operational meetings aimed at defining the preparatory pathway for the Extraordinary Jubilee of 2033.
The Ginkgo Biloba survives in polluted urban environments, tolerates various soil types, and resists diseases and parasites. In many Asian cultures, it is a symbol of longevity. The tree offers numerous benefits, including improving urban air quality and creating shaded, cooling areas during the warm seasons. A specimen of this species was planted on March 6 in the Vatican Gardens.
Our Lady of Altagracia has been protecting and accompanying the people of the Dominican Republic since 1514. A replica of the venerated image can also be found in the Vatican Garden’s Bastione Maestro. According to tradition, the image appeared on an orange tree. In memory of the Apparition and in an effort to strengthen the bond between Vatican City State and the faithful of the Caribbean nation, on Tuesday morning, 23 July, Cardinal Fernando Vérgez Alzaga, President of the Governorate of Vatican City State and Luis Emilio Montalvo Arzeno, Ambassador of the Dominican Republic to the Holy See, planted an orange tree in the Vatican Gardens. Salvatore Farina, Director of the Directorate for Infrastructures and Services, was also present at the tree planting event.
As part of the celebrations for the Jubilee Year 2025, the Governorate of Vatican City State and Hera Group have signed a Memorandum of Understanding to launch targeted initiatives for the sustainable management of waste produced within the Vatican territory, with a particular focus on plastic (PET) bottles.
Seventy five years ago, on 29 September 1949, Pius XII proclaimed Saint Michael Archangel, Protector of the People of God and victor of the fight between good and evil, the Patron Saint and protector of the Police. On the occasion of the liturgical feast of the Archangel, who is also the Patron Saint of the Gendarmerie Corps, on Sunday morning, 29 September, Cardinal Fernando Vérgez Alzaga, President of the Governorate of Vatican City State, celebrated Holy Mass in the Vatican’s Church of Maria, Madre della Famiglia (Mary, Mother of the Family). Fr Luigi Trapelli, national coordinator of chaplains of the State Police and five chaplains concelebrated with him.
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