The Vice Minister Marina Sereni today received the Ambassador of Eritrea FessahazionPietrosMenghistu. The theme of the interview was the story of the Italian State School in Asmara, subject by the Eritrean Government of measures that put at risk the activity and survival of the Institute.
Sereni gave the Ambassador a copy of a letter addressed to the Eritrean Minister of Foreign Affairs in recent days. The Vice Minister reiterated the surprise and concern of our Government for the unexpected measures. She stressed that the school, whose activities are governed by a specific Agreement signed between Rome and Asmara in 2012, is a central component of bilateral cooperation between the two countries.
The Italian State School is, in fact, an essential cultural institution in the country. 95% of the students attending the school are of Eritrean nationality, who, following the Government’s measures, have so far been unable to take the baccalaureate exam. In its prolonged activity, several thousand students have studied and graduated there, many of whom have held important positions in the Government and economy of Eritrea.
Deputy Minister Sereni and the Ambassador has therefore asked the Eritrean Government to provide clarifications to enable the resumption of activities to be planned, especially with a view to the start of the new school year, scheduled for September.
