From June 25 to 27, a system mission of Italian Development Cooperation took place in the Republic of the Congo—the first ever since the country was included last year among the priority nations for Development Cooperation, given its prominent role in the Mattei Plan.
The mission was led by the Deputy Director General of Development Cooperation / Central Director for Development Cooperation Initiatives, Carlo Batori, accompanied by the Special Envoy of the Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation for the Mattei Plan, Massimo Riccardo; the Director of AICS, Marco Riccardo Rusconi; the Director of the AICS Regional Office in Abidjan (responsible for the Republic of the Congo), Aldo Cera; as well as an official for Sub-Saharan Africa from the Office of the Diplomatic Advisor to the Prime Minister within the Mattei Plan mission structure, Cassa Depositi e Prestiti, CIHEAM Bari, and the AVSI Foundation.
Assisted throughout by the Embassy, the delegation participated in an intense program of meetings and field visits together with the Italian Ambassador to Brazzaville, Enrico Nunziata. Attendees included the Congolese Ministers of Health and Population, Jean Rosaire Ibara; Agriculture, Livestock and Fisheries, Paul Valentin Ngobo; Energy and Water Resources, Emil Ouosso; Finance, Budget and Public Portfolio, Christian Yoka; and International Cooperation and Promotion of Public-Private Partnerships, Denis Christel Sassou N’Guesso. Also present were the World Bank Group, the African Development Bank, representatives of various UN agencies operating locally, and the Cooperation section of the EU Delegation in the Republic of the Congo, particularly for synergies between the Mattei Plan and the Global Gateway.
June 27 was dedicated to a field visit to the BFi concession in the village of Malolo 2, in the Niari department, Louvakou district, which is the focus of a public-private partnership initiative partly financed with funds from Italian Cooperation and implemented by CIHEAM Bari and the company BFi. The visit was preceded by a brief courtesy meeting with local authorities, including the mayor and prefect of Dolisie.
The Italian Cooperation mission in the Republic of the Congo strengthened the bilateral partnership within the framework of the Mattei Plan in key sectors such as health, agriculture, water, energy, and finance—thanks also to the identification of blended financial instruments and the development of public-private partnership models. It further reinforced synergies with multilateral financial institutions and the UN system locally, laying solid operational foundations for a shared and sustainable action in the spirit of the Mattei Plan for Africa and common growth.
Source: ANSA