The President of the Council Giorgia Meloni met with the UN Secretary General, Antonio Guterres. The occasion was a good one to present the program that Italy intends to carry forward to the next G7, where our country will hold the presidency.
Prime Minister Meloni in the bilateral with Guterres “underlined the need for a greater and coordinated commitment in favor of Africa, highlighting the possibility that crises on the continent could become opportunities for growth”. Guterres, in response “he fully shared the Italian approach towards Africa and expressed his willingness to collaborate with the Italian Presidency of the G7".
Furthermore, the general secretary has “expressed his appreciation for the significant contribution provided by Italy to the Organization in all sectors of activity and also recalled the Food Systems Summit in Rome, defining it as a great success. Another theme at the center of the conversation is that of artificial intelligence and development prospects, which guarantee the centrality of man. They both agreed to work together on this point.".
Meloni also brought to the attention of the General Assembly the opportunity to involve the United Nations in the fight against human traffickers, similarly strengthening the UN centers for asylum seekers, which already exist in Africa.
The hotspots of the area should be affectedUNHCR, the United Nations refugee agency. A particular focus should be given to hot spot present in Libya, Tunisia and Niger.
The idea is to use the centers ofUNHCR to verify the requirements of migrants before they set off for North Africa and to offer them legal humanitarian corridors to those who are entitled to asylum. In essence, temporary visas could be granted for seasonal work in the Old Continent.
Here the UN authority should come into play which, according to the Italian plan, should engage in the setting up of temporary structures, in collaboration and with the placet of the countries concerned to host those migrants whose position needs to be verified.
Returning to the UN General Assembly, Meloni emphasized the concept of the need to defend national borders, declaring global war on traffickers. The Italian line will also focus heavily on the implementation of the Mattei Plan for Africa.
The Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani, following the Prime Minister's delegation, had a series of bilateral meetings of which he showed satisfaction because Côte d'Ivoire had agreed to impose visas for exiting the country.
Among the bilateral meetings were those which took place with the presidents of Senegal, Guinea Bissau, Malawi e Kenya, who confirmed their commitment to supporting all initiatives aimed at the development of Africa.
The Italian government's idea is to make substantial investments in strategic sectors such as energy and infrastructure.
The harmony also recorded with the Algerian Tabboune, with whom Meloni took stock of the tensions in the Sahel, was also noteworthy.
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