First woman appointed as head of Caritas

Source: Fides

For the first time, a woman has been appointed as head of Caritas Internationalis. Lesley-Anne Knight, 51, from Zimbabwe, is the new secretary general of the Caritas Internationalis confederation, elected at the end of a General Assembly held over the past few days in the Vatican.

Knight, who worked for 25 years with CAFOD, where she was International Director, succeeds Duncan MacLaren. She takes operative control of the organisation which also elected as president Honduras Cardinal Archbishop Oscar Rodriguez Maradiaga of Tegucigalpa.

The newly elected secretary general said: "Caritas is a treasure. I look forward with great honour to the next four years at Caritas Internationalis. The work we do here has a lasting impact on the lives of the poor, and I feel humbled to be given this responsibility by my brothers and sisters in the Caritas family."

"Our priorities in the confederation will be humanitarian emergencies, integral development of the local communities and peace building. Not as diverse pieces of work, but as all part of the same program that will help the poor transform their own lives.

Caritas will intensify its internal coordination, the capacity to create awareness to achieve its potential and transform the world through faith in Jesus Christ".