The late Mother Teresa of Calcutta, the Nobel laureate who dedicated her life to helping the poorest of the poor, will be made a saint of the Roman Catholic Church in September 2016, the Vatican says.

• Why small things at work make a big difference
• Vatican softens stance on homosexuality

It said Pope Francis had cleared the way for her sainthood by approving a decree recognising a miracle attributed to her intercession with God. It was believed to be the inexplicable healing of a man suffering from multiple brain tumours.

Mother Teresa, who died in 1997 at the age of 87 and was known as the “saint of the gutters”, is expected to be canonised in early September.

It was not clear if the ceremony would take place in Rome or India.