Vatican diplomat urges subsidiarity and faith-based participation in international development decisions

At a meeting with the United Nations special rapporteur on the right to development, Archbishop Ettore Balestrero, the Holy See's apostolic nuncio and Permanent Observer in Geneva, argued that subsidiarity must guide international development decisions. He framed subsidiarity as a practical way to secure genuine participation by the people affected.

What subsidiarity means in this context

Balestrero said decisions should be taken as close as possible to those affected. Higher authorities and international institutions can support and complement local actors, but they should not replace families, communities, and intermediary social bodies. The emphasis is on local agency: people should not be passive recipients of decisions made by others.

Participation, according to Balestrero, must be substantive and inclusive. It is not limited to consultation or distribution of material aid. Genuine participation allows individuals to express convictions and pursue the common good through the institutions and communities they belong to. That includes intermediary bodies—organizations and structures between the individual and the state—which carry social responsibilities and local knowledge.

Balestrero specifically named faith-based communities as necessary participants in development processes. He said these communities provide channels through which people express deeply held convictions and organize for communal aims. Their inclusion, he argued, contributes to integral human development rather than only addressing economic needs.

Integral human development described

The archbishop expanded the concept of development beyond economic indicators. He listed spiritual, cultural, moral, and relational dimensions alongside economic needs. His point: development policies and projects that ignore these dimensions risk leaving significant human needs unmet.

How this frames interaction with international institutions

The practical implication of Balestrero's remarks is a limit on top-down decision-making. International organizations and national authorities retain supportive roles, but effective development should be locally grounded. That perspective places responsibility on international actors to design frameworks that enable local ownership and active participation rather than imposing uniform solutions.

Takeaways for policy and practitioners

• Design decision-making processes that transfer authority and responsibility to local families, communities, and intermediary bodies whenever feasible.
• Include faith-based organizations in planning and implementation, recognizing their social networks and moral perspectives as part of community life.
• Broaden program objectives and monitoring to capture spiritual, cultural, moral, and relational outcomes as well as economic results.

Balestrero's remarks to the UN rapporteur emphasize a practical, people-centered approach: development decisions should empower local actors, and participation must be broad enough to address the whole human person and the social structures that support communal life.