The Horn of Africa represents an area of prominent strategic interest for Italy within the broader Red Sea region, where our Country plays a leading role in maintaining peace and stability, in line with long-standing friendly relations and with a traditional and multifaceted commitment.
The region continues to be marked by strong tensions, both within individual countries and between states, which keep it in a worrying state of instability and exacerbate challenges related to food insecurity, access to services, and the effects of climate change on communities.
The Italian Ministry of Foreign Affairs has launched numerous collaborations in the political, security, economic, social, cultural and development cooperation fields, and on issues such as poverty reduction and support for regional integration processes, both bilaterally and within the European Union. Italy’s financial contribution to initiatives supported by United Nations Agencies, aimed at improving living conditions in the most vulnerable areas, is also significant.
Two regional organizations are headquartered in the Horn of Africa: the African Union (AU) and the Intergovernmental Authority on Development (IGAD). At the multilateral level, Italy has accredited its own Permanent Representative to the African Union as an observer, and holds the role of co-chair of the IGAD Partners Forum (IPF), which brings together the organization’s donors.
Confirming the prominent role the Italian Government attributes to the Horn of Africa, two countries in the region—Ethiopia and Kenya—were identified from the outset as pilot Countries of the Mattei Plan, the partnership program with the African continent launched in Rome in January 2024 at the first Italy–Africa Summit.
Furthermore, within the framework of Italy’s 2024 G7 Presidency, significant attention was devoted to Africa, with particular focus on strengthening peace, stability and growth on the continent, and on deepening synergies between the Italian strategy and the EU Global Gateway.