Deputy Minister Emanuela Del Re attended today the 8th Ministerial Conference of the 5+5 Dialogue on Migration and Development in Marrakech, together with the Ministers of Foreign Affairs of France, Spain, Portugal, Malta and the EU High Representative Josep Borrell for the Northern shore of the Mediterranean and representatives from Morocco, Mauritania, Libya, Algeria and Tunisia for the Southern shore.
The Conference was a useful opportunity to reaffirm Italy’s support for an all-encompassing and balanced approach to the migration phenomenon, harmonizing mobility with the fight against traffickers, integrating the different dimensions of security and socio-economic development. “Italy supports any multilateral mechanism to improve migration management: we must strengthen the Valletta Action Plan and support the Global Compact on refugees” stated the Deputy Minister.
Afterwards, Deputy Minister Del Re mentioned the progressive normalisation of migration flows in the central-western Mediterranean as a virtuous example of cooperation between the two shores of the Mediterranean. “It is time to strengthen this cooperation, both at sea and in countries of origin and transit, creating the conditions so that people do not have to leave their countries irregularly. Italy has done and will continue to do its part not only with the Fund for Africa (renamed the Fund for Migration), financed with 226 million euros over 3 years, and through the support of the European Union Trust Fund for Africa – of which we are the second contributing country – but also by focusing on the enhancement of African diasporas in Italy, which act as a bridge between the country of origin and the destination country and as a vehicle for the economic and social development of both”.
