In her visit to Algeria Jan. 23, Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni laid the first brick of what she calls her “Mattei Plan” for Africa. During her visit, four memoranda of understanding were signed on energy, small and medium-size enterprises (SMEs) and space.
In her press conference with Algerian President Abdelmadjid Tebboune, Meloni stressed that her government aims “for a partnership to increase prospects for growth, with a view to building bridges between the shores of the Mediterranean and stabilizing the region, which is strategic for Italy and Europe. We need a Mattei plan for Africa, on an equal basis with the countries on the southern shore of the Mediterranean to turn crises into opportunities.”
Meloni added: “Among the new areas of cooperation with Algeria are infrastructure, including digital infrastructure, biomedical, telecommunications. And this is net of cooperation between small and medium-sized enterprises. We are focusing very much on the Mediterranean front. And in this logic Algeria, in North Africa, is the most stable, strategic and fundamental partner. When we talk about the Mattei plan we talk about a model of development, including for Africa.”
In the morning, Meloni had paid homage to a garden named for Enrico Mattei, who is considered a national hero in Algeria due to his support for its independence struggle. “We were at the garden dedicated to a great Italian, Enrico Mattei, who did so much for this country and its independence. Our model of cooperation is not predatory but both partners must be satisfied and grow,” she said.
Most exciting, a memorandum of understanding was signed between the Italian Space Agency (ASI) and the Algerian Space Agency (ASAL), on space science and exploration; technology applied to space; and Earth observation and education.
