ROME: The summit held today at Villa Doria Pamphilj marked a pivotal political and symbolic moment for the future of Italy’s Mattei Plan for Africa. Co-chaired by Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, the event formalized the integration of the Italian initiative with the EU’s Global Gateway, projecting the plan into a broader, multilateral, and more structured dimension. The key word of the day: internationalization.
“This event embodies the spirit of the Mattei Plan for Africa,” said Meloni, emphasizing that partnership and sharing—not aid or paternalism—have been the foundations of the initiative from the very beginning. But it is the internationalization, the result of “meticulous work,” that represents today’s major challenge for Italy. “Africa is the continent where our future is being decided,” she said. Thus, expanding the Italian vision to involve global actors is not optional—it’s imperative. And in this, “the European Union is our natural partner,” she added, a message she reiterated at the G7 and G20 summits as well.
Von der Leyen reinforced the joint ambition: “The Global Gateway and the Mattei Plan were designed to be collective efforts. They exist to tackle shared challenges and to seize opportunities that benefit all parties involved.”
A European Initiative with a Global Horizon
But the significance of this moment goes beyond EU alignment. Today’s summit marks the launch of a new phase, one in which the Mattei Plan is expected to scale up its engagement well beyond the European context. Past U.S. proposals to connect the Mattei Plan with the G7’s Partnership for Global Infrastructure and Investment (PGII) already signaled this trajectory.
Further momentum now comes from growing interest in the initiative from Middle Eastern partners—and, crucially, from India. The strategic link between the Mattei Plan and the India-Middle East-Europe Corridor (IMEC) is emerging as a potential backbone of global connectivity. Italy, which plays a dual role—as a lead architect of the Mattei Plan and a natural European hub for IMEC—could turn this convergence into a powerful geopolitical and industrial lever.
As Senator Stefania Craxi, Chair of the Senate Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee, recently noted, this convergence offers both strategic and practical value. While IMEC provides the physical infrastructure—transport, energy, and digital networks—the Mattei Plan delivers the human, social, and political component, leveraging Italy’s strengths in agri-food systems, vocational training, healthcare, and technical education.
Lobito Corridor and the African Front
In an era where geoeconomic corridors define international influence, Africa becomes a critical testing ground. One key project highlighted at the summit was the Lobito Corridor, where Italy, in partnership with the Africa Finance Corporation, Cassa Depositi e Prestiti, and SACE, has announced a major investment package. Agreements signed today include a $270 million loan and a $50 million equity investment to support railway infrastructure between Zambia and Angola.
The aim is to strengthen connections between Africa’s Atlantic and Indian Ocean coasts, support critical supply chains—such as rare earth minerals—and reduce dependency on China’s dominant footprint across the continent. This corridor, embedded in a broader U.S.-backed framework, becomes a litmus test for the Mattei Plan’s ability to operate at global scale.
Digital Transformation and AI for Development
A crucial dimension emerging from the summit is digital innovation and artificial intelligence. Italy reaffirmed its commitment by supporting the Blue Raman submarine cable project—linking Europe, the Middle East, and Asia—and by launching the AI Hub for Sustainable Development at the UNDP headquarters in Rome.
This flagship project of Italy’s G7 presidency is backed by G7 countries and major Western tech firms and aims to involve up to 500,000 African startups over the next three years. According to Microsoft, this could become a transformative step in tying the Mattei Plan to emerging opportunities in the global tech economy.
Strategic Rivalries and Multilevel Alliances
All these developments take on greater weight in the context of intensifying global competition in Africa. China’s expanding presence—widespread, assertive, and often opaque—remains the primary challenge. In response, today’s summit underscored the emergence of a new strategic triangle between Italy, the European Union, and Gulf nations.
One concrete example is the coordinated support for Sidi Ould Tah, a Gulf-region candidate for president of the African Development Bank. This growing alignment opens the door to a multilayered system of cooperation—between European institutions, African financial actors, and Middle Eastern capital.
A New Pact with Africa
In the end, the Rome summit represents a crucial inflection point: European in structure, but global in ambition. “A pact among free nations that believe in dignity,” said Meloni, making it clear that this is not a one-off initiative but part of a broader journey.
Next steps are already on the agenda: Meloni will travel to Addis Ababa in July, and African leaders will return to Rome in the fall for a follow-up summit. The challenge now is to translate today’s political vision into operational reality—and to build the financial, technological, and institutional architecture necessary to make the Mattei Plan a driver of shared growth in the 21st century.
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