Under-Secretary Mario Giro, whose remit includes Central America, will be on an official visit to Mexico on 8 and 9 August 2013 – the first bilateral visit by an Italian Government representative in many years. “Mexico is undergoing an important economic and social reform process, a process that is making rapid pace and in which all of the country’s political forces are taking part. The reforms will revitalise Mexico’s economy and society. And Italy wants to be an important partner for issues concerning small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), local development, sustainability and social cohesion”, declared Under-Secretary Giro.
On the first part of his trip Giro will meet the Italian business community in the Querétaro district. “There are about 1400 Italian businesses in Mexico, the highest number in all of Latin America. Our companies here have succeeded not just in internationalising but in creating an industrial district similar to the ones found in Italy. This point is worth underscoring, because such districts form economic-social systems that are difficult to export. But Italian firms have found fertile terrain here in Mexico, and the reforms now under way are sending out positive signals”.
During his visit, the Under-Secretary and his Mexican counterparts will be discussing the implementation of the Memorandum on collaboration by the two countries’ SMEs
The Italian Government is working to bring a new impetus to its relations with Latin America. As part of this effort, it aims to establish closer relations with Central America, where Mexico is a key player. Moreover, the country currently holds the chair of the Rome-based Italian-Latin American Institute.
Under-Secretary Giro will be meeting his Mexican colleague, Carlos Alberto De Icaza, and the Chair of the Parliamentary Energy Committee, Marco Antonio Bernal. He will present them with invitations to the 6th Italian-Latin American and Caribbean Conference in December 2013, and to the seminar on the Italian electricity grid and renewable energy model taking place in early November. He will also discuss the preparations for the 4th meeting of the Italy-Mexico joint Commission scheduled to take place in Mexico City in 2014, and for an important Italian trade mission to the country.
Under-Secretary Giro will conclude his mission with a visit to the Italian Cultural Institute in Mexico City to begin discussions on the Italy-Latin America Year of Culture. Our cultural institute in Mexico is an important and cost-effective organisation that, thanks to the Italian language courses it organises, brings in revenue worth 7 times the public funding it receives. Italian-Mexican cultural relations are particularly strong in the areas of inter-university, archaeological and publishing cooperation. Scientific and technological collaboration is also significant in the environmental, renewable energy and biomedical fields.
