(The authentic text is only the speech that was actually delivered)
Dear colleagues, ladies and gentlemen,
Somalia has made important progress and is on a positive trajectory.
The Country is defining its new State building process and tackling the issues that hinder stability: from the fight against Al Shabaab and Daesh, to economic development.
At the last London Conference, the International Community recognized this progress and agreed to define a new framework for international support to Mogadishu. We want to eliminate, once and for all, the risks of a humanitarian crisis. In line with this commitment I am glad to announce a new financial contribution of 2 million euros for projects on health and food security.
We stress the importance of two key principles.
First, the linkage between security and development.
Second, Somalia’s ownership in the reconstruction process.
Political reform and economic recovery are interconnected. They are necessary to sustain the democratic process, short-term growth, long-term development, and other crucial issues such as the respect for human rights.
Setting priorities is the job of the Government. But the International Community can do a lot to help the Government of Somalia achieve its goals.
In particular, there is room for progress on two “tracks”:
The first “track” is supporting Somalia’s re-engagement with International Financial Institutions. The normalization of this relationship is fundamental for debt relief, new financing and new investments. Once this point has been reached, all of Somalia’s debt towards Italy will be cancelled.
The second “track” is the stimulus to domestic growth through capacity development initiatives in the infrastructure sector.
Both “tracks” will have an impact as long as they are accompanied by progress in the institution building process undertaken by Somalia. For example: greater accountability of public institutions and the definition of competences between the Federal and State governments.
Finally, Somalia has set the goal to hold its first “one person, one vote” elections in 2021. It’s a very important objective. And Somalia should know that the International Community stands by its side.
Our ambition is to expand our partnership and to boost our cooperation with Somalia.
