“A strong partnership in support of the economic vocation of Africa is a priority of our foreign policy, as the document of strategic orientation on Africa issued last December clearly states”. The Vice Minister Marina Sereni declared this in a video address presented at the Summit held in Johannesburg by the European House Ambrosetti to foster discussions and exchanges between Africa and Europe on opportunities for business and development, with a focus on the situation post-Covid19.
“On October 7 and 8 – the Vice Minister announced – we organized the third edition of meetings with Africa, held in Rome, focusing on the environment, energy and sustainable green development. Previously, an entire session of the G20 under the Italian presidency in Matera concentrated on this continent. In addition, in line with Italy’s efforts in the battle against the pandemic, last May we hosted the Global Health Summit in Rome. At that time, the Italian government undertook to provide the African countries with access to vaccines and other therapeutic and diagnostic tools to combat current and future health crises. At the same time, considerable work was done to mobilize resources for the more vulnerable countries, with contributions by international financial institutions as well as private capital”.
“At the entrepreneurial level, – continued Sereni – Italy has been among the leading European investors in Africa in recent years, improving its economic and commercial position on the continent. In all this, we have valorized the action of our organizations of financial internationalization, like the Italian National Savings and Loan Bank, SACE and SIMEST. It is no coincidence that the Export Pact, launched by Minister Di Maio in 2020, provides a framework for intensifying economic and industrial collaboration through the organization of events like business forums, country presentations and incoming missions of African operators to the most important international trade fairs of various sectors in Italy. Among the most promising sectors for expansion of the Italian entrepreneurial system in Africa are agrifood, energy and infrastructures”.
“In the Italian strategy of partnership with Africa, our priority is to convey resources of cooperation and productive investment toward the key sectors of education and professional training. In the agricultural sector, we are financing several projects that contribute to food safety, and at the same time modernize the African agricultural business. In this connection, the contribution of Italian Cooperation to entrepreneurial development in Africa is noteworthy, especially as regards the practice of encouraging local acquisition of innovative and technological skills, a key factor – the Vice Minister concluded – to guarantee full inclusion of the continent in the global economic system and attract even more investment in Africa”.
