Italian agriculture’s focus on high-quality production by family-run operations can become a development model for African agriculture. This is the thinking of both the government and business persons in Italy and those of Africa, and was the most interesting element that emerged at the Agriculture Table of the Italy-Africa Initiative held yesterday in Rome. The project was launched in December 2013 by foreign minister Emma Bonino to promote and coordinate Italian activities on that continent.
High quality Italian production can become a framework model
Participants in the discussion at the foreign ministry in Rome included the agriculture ministers of the main Sub-Saharan African countries, experts from international organisations such as FAO and IFAD, Italian business associations and NGOs such as “Slow Food”. “The Italian agricultural model, which bases itself on family-run operations, is a good match with African agriculture”, said Under-Secretary for Foreign Affairs Mario Giro, “and if we teach Italian high-quality agricultural production to Africans, ours can become a framework model”.
Opportunities and obstacles
The Sub-Saharan agriculture ministers unanimously underscored the quality of their family and village-based production, and showed interest in collaborating with Italian enterprises, which they appreciated for their many points of similarity. From Angola to Cameroon, the Democratic Republic of Congo to Ethiopia, and from Uganda to Senegal, the ministers did not deny the problems: poor infrastructure, poorly-trained workers and lack of technology. But all cited the dynamism of their fast-growing economies and the formidable potential for agricultural development, with millions of hectares of fertile land as yet unexploited and millions more that could be better exploited with more advanced technologies. Slow Food founder Carlo Petrini provocatively called upon Italy “to insist on the end to the shameless dumping in Africa of agricultural products financed by the EU”.
Seven out of ten fastest growing economies are African
The African countries expressed great appreciation for the Italy-Africa Initiative and willingness toward collaboration with our businesses.
“Seven out of ten of the world’s fastest growing economies are African” concluded Deputy Foreign Minister Lapo Pistelli, “our initiative’s message to Italians is “switch on the light there”.
