ROME: African leaders gathered at a Rome summit on Monday to hear Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni's much-hyped plan for the continent, aimed at transforming Italy into an energy hub -- and stopping migration.
Far-right leader Meloni, who came to power in 2022, has vowed to reshape relations with African countries by taking a "non-predatory" approach inspired by Enrico Mattei, founder of Italy's state-owned energy giant Eni.
The so-called Mattei Plan hopes to posit Italy as a key bridge between Africa and Europe, funnelling energy north while exchanging investment in the south for deals aimed at curbing migrant departures across the Mediterranean Sea.
Meloni said the plan would initially be funded to the tune of 5.5 billion euros, some of which would be loans, with investments focused on energy, agriculture, water, health and education.
Representatives of over 25 countries attended the summit on Monday at the Italian senate -- dubbed "A bridge for common growth" -- along with European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and representatives of United Nations agencies and the World Bank.
Meloni told them that Europe and Africa's "destinies" were interconnected and she was determined to co-operate "as equals -- far from any predatory temptation, but also from that charitable approach to Africa that is ill-suited to its extraordinary potential for development".
Guests included African Union Commission chair Moussa Faki Mahamat, Tunisian President Kais Saied, Senegal President Macky Sall, as well as the presidents of the Republic of Congo, Eritrea, Kenya, Mauritania, Mozambique and Zimbabwe.
Other countries, including Algeria, Chad, Egypt and the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), were represented by ministers.
The AU's Faki said Africa was "willing to discuss the content and implementation" of the plan but pointed out: "We would have liked to have been consulted beforehand."
Rome holds the presidency of the G7 group of nations this year and has vowed to make African development a central theme, in part to increase influence in a continent where powers such as China, Russia, India, Japan and Turkiye have been expanding their political clout.
Meloni said the Italian plan would start with a series of pilot schemes -- from modernising grain production in Egypt to purifying water in Ethiopia and providing training in renewable energies in Morocco.
Von der Leyen described the plan as "complementary" to the European Union's own Africa package. — AFP
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