Shawdesh Desk: The Vatican honoured Nobel Laureate Muhammad Yunus with the ‘Lamp of Peace of Saint Francis’ at the Basilica of Saint Francis in Italian city of Assisi on Tuesday.

The award aims to honour those who work towards promoting peace and harmony.

Yunus received the Lamp of Peace of Saint Francis, a recognition that is conferred to political, cultural or civil society personalities who have distinguished themselves for their commitment in favouring peace, dialogue and union at the Papal Basilica of Assisi. He also held a Lectio Magistralis there, said a Yunus Centre release.

Mauro Gambetti, the Master of the Holy Convent and the Papal Basilica of Assisi, presented the award to Yunus on behalf of the Vatican in the presence of senior officials of the Vatican, political leaders, rectors and professors from various universities in Rome and prominent social leaders and a big gathering of youth from all over Italy.

In his acceptance speech, Yunus elaborated his worries about three impending dangers which challenge the very existence of human beings on this planet beyond this century: extreme wealth concentration on an ongoing basis, rapid environmental degradation, and the rise of artificial intelligence.

Yunus also gave a lecture on circular economy and microcredit and participated in the scientific teaching of Percorsi Assisi, the first inter-university school in economics fostered by the Franciscan friars of the Sacred Convent and multiple higher education Italian institutes. This school is part of the path that would lead next year to ‘The Economy of Francesco’, a global summit, promoted by Pope Francis.

The award represents the simplicity of the Franciscan message: the lamp is made of glass to recall purity and the oil that burns inside is both a symbol of humility and of the desire of rebirth and social commitment. It is a replica of a glass oil lamp that burns at the side of the grave of Saint Francis of Assisi, the founder of the Franciscan order behind the peace prize.

Enzo Fortunato, spokesperson and communication director of the Holy Convent of Papal Basilica of Assisi, representing Vatican, invited Yunus on behalf of Pope Francis and made the award announcement earlier this year during the 9th Social Business Day held in Bangkok.

The Lamp of Peace was first presented in 1981 to Polish trade union leader Lech Walesa. Other recipients include Pope John Paull II, the Dalai Lama, Saint Teresa of Calcutta, former Russian leader Mikhail Gorbachev, former Colombian president Juan Manuel Santos, former German chancellor Angela Merkel and King Abdullah II of Jordan.