\u201cIf we wait for the global revolution we won\u2019t get anywhere. Some initiatives that attract foreign investments and improve Italy\u2019s appeal will be launched immediately, others will take more time\u201d. Minister for Foreign Affairs Emma Bonino sounds the charge: \u201cgrowth diplomacy\u201d, one of the pillars of her efforts since she took up the post, has been given pace and impetus in the 50 measures envisaged in Destinazione Italia, <\/I>a government plan approved on 19 September that will become operational shortly, and that was drafted precisely in the halls of the foreign ministry. \u201cWe will be launching a public consultation in the coming hours\u201d, the minister explained, \u201casking investors, businesses, unions, associations and citizens to participate so that we can begin to identify what to do immediately\u201d.<\/P>
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But Minister Bonino, when will the laws come? <\/STRONG><\/STRONG><\/P> \u201cSoon, some with the current financial plan (legge di Stabilit\u00e0<\/I>) in mid-October, others with Destinazione Italia<\/I>. For once we have decided to do things differently: instead of starting off from existing legislation, we have developed an overall vision of what and how we want to attract, and outlined 50 very specific measures. And it is on these that we want public feedback\u201d.<\/P> There may be some objections, however: wouldn\u2019t it have been better, at this difficult stage, to concentrate on backing businesses in Italy? <\/STRONG><\/STRONG><\/P> \u201cIt\u2019s not as if Destinazione Italia<\/I> were offering privileged treatment to foreign businesses \u2013 on the contrary, we are well aware that what foreign investors need is the same thing our businesses need to stay competitive\u201d.<\/P> Are you referring perhaps to justice and the excesses of bureaucracy? Haven\u2019t you noticed some progress on these issues as compared with 5 years ago when you were foreign trade minister? <\/STRONG><\/STRONG><\/P> \u201cThere is still a lot, a great deal, to be done. Also because investors in Europe are not only looking for incentives and tax breaks, but certainties, when it comes to job market regulations, authorisation timescales \u2013 and above all, regarding justice, both civil and criminal\u201d.<\/P> Themes to which you have a history of being sensitive… <\/STRONG><\/STRONG><\/P> \u201cIt has to finally be understood that this is not a Radical fixation of mine, but a fundamental area in which to intervene, not only because illegality cannot be tolerated under the rule of law, but also because it is discouraging to those wanting to invest in Italy, whether fellow nationals or foreigners, and therefore has a dramatically depressive effect also on our economy and on growth\u201d.<\/P> It all seems very linear, even too easy. Aren\u2019t you worried that something will go wrong? <\/STRONG><\/STRONG><\/P> \u00abCertainly, if the government were to fall…\u00bb. <\/P> A danger skirted, at least for now. Other fears? <\/STRONG><\/STRONG><\/P> \u00abInstability\u00bb. <\/P> Which is everyone\u2019s nightmare, we are hearing it from Brussels to the IMF. <\/STRONG><\/STRONG><\/P> \u201cIt\u2019s one thing to say to a potential investor that we have 6 days\u2019 time, 6 months is something else. How can I speak with a foreign firm, a fund or whatever else, and convince them to invest in our country if they cannot be sure that they\u2019ll be speaking with the same person the next time?\u201d.<\/P> Who will be out hunting for investors, the ambassadors? Berlusconi was already asking diplomats to become managers back when he was premier (and interim foreign minister). Are you copying Berlusconi?<\/STRONG><\/STRONG><\/P> \u201cI don\u2019t want ambassador\/stockbrokers. That\u2019s not what diplomat\/managers means; today\u2019s economic and cultural diplomacy is an extension of foreign policy through other means\u201d.<\/P> So who will be selling Italy\u2019s image? <\/STRONG><\/STRONG><\/P> \u201cWe are considering strengthening the embassies with professionals with the appropriate experience and skills for this role, reorienting the diplomatic network to respond to the needs of tomorrow\u2019s world, not to the memory of yesterday\u2019s. We will be downsizing the presence of consulates in Europe to open new ones in the Middle and Far East, and equipping our diplomatic missions in the world\u2019s major financial hubs, where the majority of capital comes from, with investment attraction experts\u201d <\/P> You were the first to speak of \u201cthe outlet syndrome\u201d as a way of underscoring how Italy must decide on what investments to attract. And yet recent events lead to the idea that having foreign resources also carries the risk of selling System Italy cheap? <\/STRONG><\/STRONG><\/P> \u201cWe obviously can\u2019t go around discounting assets that give us a competitive advantage, but we have to bring capital into Italy that creates development and growth. But we also have to be very clear about this with our citizens, and explain that attracting investments today is exactly the opposite of selling Made in Italy cheap. In a global economy like ours, strengthening our productive capacity with foreign capital is perhaps the only way we can stop the delocalisation of our businesses\u201d.<\/P> Two years from now we\u2019ll have EXPO Milano, a major showcase for Italy. Even the English have signed up, and we also await the Americans. Is this going to be Italy\u2019s last chance to regain its leadership position? <\/STRONG><\/STRONG><\/P> \u201cThe Americans have presented some interesting projects, and we are waiting for them. But in any case we have to drop this \u201clast chance\u201d rhetoric, because it seduces us into thinking that if we work well this one time, with this one goal, we\u2019ll be able to lower our guard and go back to working badly as we did before. The true success of the EXPO will be measured in numbers, but also on the basis of what remains and starts to happen the day after it\u2019s over\u201d. <\/P><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"\u201cIf we wait for the global revolution we won\u2019t get anywhere. Some initiatives that attract foreign investments and improve Italy\u2019s appeal will be launched immediately, others will take more time\u201d. Minister for Foreign Affairs Emma Bonino sounds the charge: \u201cgrowth diplomacy\u201d, one of the pillars of her efforts since she took up the post, has […]","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[23],"tags":[76,66],"class_list":["post-24107","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-interviste","tag-ministri-precedenti","tag-opportunita"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.esteri.it\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/24107","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.esteri.it\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.esteri.it\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.esteri.it\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.esteri.it\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=24107"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.esteri.it\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/24107\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.esteri.it\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=24107"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.esteri.it\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=24107"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.esteri.it\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=24107"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}
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