The coordination meeting of the institutions to promote Italy in Canada took place in Ottawa on 26 January under the chairmanship of the Italian Ambassador to Canada, Claudio Taffuri. The meeting was attended by the Consul Generals in Toronto, Montreal and Vancouver, the directors of the Italian Cultural Institutes, the representatives of the Ministry of Defence, ICE (the Italian Trade Agency), ENIT (the national tourist bureau), the Italian Chambers of Commerce, Italy’s Central Bank, and some of the major Italian businesses in Canada, including Astaldi, Campari, Delmar Chemicals, Enel Green Power, Ferrero,Fincantieri, GE Nuovo Pignone, IDS North America, Lavazza, Leonardo, Rina Services and Thor & Partners.
The aim of the meeting was to define the 2018 promotional strategies for Italy’s presence in Canada, with a view to “providing new momentum to the already excellent bilateral relations between the two countries,” said Ambassador Taffuri.
Ambassador Taffuri outlined the themes on which Italy focuses the most in Canada: monitoring the public procurement sector (from the day following the entry into force of the Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement (CETA) between the European Union and Canada, promoting the defense and aerospace industry, attracting inward Canadian FDI, promoting clean energies, and scientific and technological research. “In such a complex country, which has such a promising potential, it is essential that our work be based on a strategic vision and an integrated action plan, whereby all the stakeholders involved offer their operational tools, seeking business opportunities, promoting the business sector, and our economic presence,” underlined the ambassador.
With regard to our exports, the Italian-Canadian trade balance reached very positive results in the first 11 months of 2017. Italy is Canada’s eighth supplier featuring a bilateral trade volume of approximately 9.5 billion Canadian dollars, and a 7.5% increase in exports, if compared to the same period a year earlier.
