The Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs, Antonio Tajani, today signs an agreement at the Farnesina between the Foreign Ministry and the University of Rome “Foro Italico” to launch the program “L’Italia corre verso il futuro” (Italy runs towards the future), aimed at providing scholarships in the sports sector to young people from 10 countries in sub-Saharan Africa. The Rector of the University, Prof. Attilio Parisi, will participate in the signing ceremony. Lorenzo Ndele Simonelli and Yohanes Chiappinelli, athletics champions of African origin, will then take the floor.
Thanks to this innovative program, developed following the strategic lines of the Mattei Plan, brilliant students in sports subjects from sub-Saharan African countries will be able to attend Master’s Degree courses in “Motor and Sports Sciences” and in “Sports Management” at the Rome University. The scholarship holders will be selected based on merit through a collaboration that will see our Embassies in the countries involved, together with the University Foro Italico, contributing to the strengthening of ties between Italy and Africa.
The initiative is therefore part of a broader strategy of internationalization of the Italian education system, also promoted through an important package of scholarships and ad hoc projects, and designed to attract international talent. An action that strengthens Italy’s position abroad, as a concrete example of cultural and sports diplomacy to enhance our competitive, technological and industrial excellence in the world.
Sport in fact promotes peace, development and integration and is a very important economic sector in Italy, with a 1.4% impact on GDP and an estimated turnover of EUR 24.7 billion. With over EUR 7 billion in exports and approximately 400,000 people employed, it is therefore a key sector also for tourism, health, inclusion and industrial innovation.
