Every year on June 2, my country celebrates the Italian National Day, also known as the Republic Day, in Italian the “Festa della Repubblica”. It commemorates the institutional referendum held in 1946 when Italians voted to abolish the monarchy and establish a republic.
We celebrate it in the embassies and consulates all over the world, inviting local institutions and members of the Italian community. And as many readers already know, Kenya is one of the African countries with many Italian residents.
For me, currently serving as the Italian ambassador to your charming country (I have now been here for almost two years), this is an occasion not just for celebration, but also for a reflection on the many ties that bind our two countries together making a special relationship between Italy and Kenya.
I just want to highlight a few of the things, which have taken place recently, which I believe contributed to strengthen our partnership.
First would be the state visit by the President of Italy, Sergio Mattarella, to Kenya, in March last year. This was not as part of an Africa-focused tour, but Mattarella flew directly from Rome to Nairobi, flying straight back to Rome.
So, this was a purely Kenya-focused visit, intended to give a special sign of attention to Kenya. President Mattarella’s visit also was the occasion for signing a number of agreements in different fields, from culture and development cooperation, to security and trade.
Second would be the visit by President William Ruto to my country back in January this year to attend the Italy-Africa Summit hosted by the Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, and attended by several African heads of state and heads of government.
This also was a highly significant momentum, since the summit led to the launch of the new Italian strategy for Africa, the so called “Mattei’s Plan”. With ambitious objectives and funds, Italy together with the African partners is structuring the plan, which is designed – I underline - with them in order to fill the gap in some jointly identified areas. In its first phase, it will involve pilot projects in education and training, agriculture, health, energy and water.
Kenya is one of the nine African countries which will benefit from these pilot projects. A delegation from Rome has since visited Nairobi for preliminary discussions on collaboration in the areas of the environment, renewable energy, agriculture and pivotal value chains.
The visits by the two Presidents are historic because served to enhance the economic, cultural and institutional ties that exist between Italy and Kenya, opening up new programmes for mutual benefits.
There are various long-term programmes and projects which our two nations have jointly initiated, which in time will help to create economic opportunities for the youth of Kenya.
One is Italy’s proposed engagement with the leather sector in Kenya. This sector has not yet been able to fulfil its potential. And it is also a sector in which Italy has advanced expertise as one of the leading producers of quality leather goods in the world.
We intend to expand the training opportunities for young Kenyans in ways which will create local expertise in leather processing and the production of leather goods. We are working to build a critical mass of qualified personnel in this important economic sector along the years.
With the objective to increase employability of young Kenyans, our Italian Cultural Institute offers language courses with a specific focus in the tourism sector, which would potentially also increase opportunities for employment, especially in the Coast where many Italians have invested.
Hence, as we mark the 78th anniversary of the Italian Republic, I would like to express my gratitude for the warm relations between our two countries and to remark my commitment to work towards the grow of even stronger ties.
As the ambassador, I feel lucky to be here, in a country with which Italy shares so many values and in which there are so many positive opportunities for collaboration.
Ambassador of Italy to Kenya