Salesian sister appointed undersecretary of Human Development

By Vatican News staff writer

Renowned economist Sister Alessandra Smerilli is a religious of the Daughters of Mary Help of Christians, more commonly known as the Salesians of Don Bosco. On Wednesday, Pope Francis appointed Sister Smerilli as undersecretary of the Dicastery for Promoting Integral Human Development.

Born in Vasto, Italy, in 1974, Sister Smerilli has been assisting the Dicastery and the Vatican Commission for Covid-19 as coordinator of the Economy Taskforce. In her work she has underscored the importance of bringing together Gospel values and good economics, assisting the Holy See's commitment to ensure we emerge better from the crisis caused by the pandemic.

Sister Smerilli has a doctorate in Political Economy from La Sapienza University in Rome and a PhD in Economics from East Anglia University in Norwich (Great Britain). She is also Professor of Political Economy at the Pontifical Faculty of Educational Sciences "Auxilium" in Rome.

Her commitment to the Church has led her to be part of the Scientific and Organizing Committee of the “Social Weeks” of Italy’s Catholics, since 2019 she has been a Councilor for Vatican City, and since March 2020 coordinator of the Economy Task Force of the Vatican Commission for Covid-19, established by Pope Francis.