Mission of the Italian Cooperation System in Southern Africa

(ANSA) - CITTÀ DEL CAPO, 11 LUG - The third mission of the Italian cooperation system to Southern Africa (South Africa, Mozambique, Zambia and Malawi) took place in the first half of July. On 6 and 7 July, an area meeting of the ambassadors and directors of the Italian Agency for Development Cooperation (AICS) offices in Southern Africa was held in Cape Town, focusing on the prospects for further strengthening Italian action in the region within the framework of the Mattei Plan.
    The meeting was chaired by the Secretary General of the Farnesina, Ambassador Riccardo Guariglia, and followed the formula of the previous two missions in Dar es Salaam on 16-17 March (dedicated to East African countries) and in Abidjan on 4-5 May (dedicated to West African countries).
    Capetown was attended by the ambassadors of Italy in Brazzaville (Republic of Congo), Harare (Zimbabwe), Kinshasa (DR Congo), Luanda (Angola, Sao Tome), Lusaka (Zambia and Malawi), Maputo (Mozambique, Eswatini and Botswana) and Pretoria (South Africa, Lesotho, Madagascar, Mauritius and Namibia), as well as the AICS directors responsible for the region (Maputo, Nairobi and Niamey).
    The first session in Cape Town was devoted to the prospects of Italian action in Southern Africa, which aims to launch major development projects with a 'partnership of equals' approach. The ambassadors illustrated the situation in their respective countries, highlighting challenges and opportunities offered by the Mattei Plan. The second session focused on the contribution of the new strategy of Italian cooperation in Africa in implementing the Mattei Plan, and focused on specific topics such as food security, health, education, and case studies.
    On the sidelines of the meeting, the Secretary General, Ambassador Guariglia, had a meeting with Zane Dangor, Secretary General of the Department of International Relations and Cooperation (Dirco) of South Africa for bilateral consultations and an exchange of views on major regional and international issues.