Bilateral meeting with H.E. Antonio Tajani, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation of the Republic of Italy
24 October 2024, Pescara: On the margins of the G7 Development Ministers’ Meeting, the Director-General met with H.E. Antonio Tajani, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation of the Republic of Italy, to discuss food security and other priorities, including those related to the G7 Italian Presidency.
The Deputy Prime Minister thanked the Director-General for his participation in the G7 meeting and for FAO’s continued support and cooperation. The Deputy Prime Minister noted in particular FAO’s contribution to the G7 Special Session on the Humanitarian Crisis in the Middle East held on 22 October, as well as FAO’s support for the Food for Gaza initiative of the Government of Italy. In this regard, Deputy Prime Minister Tajani provided an update on the latest developments on the ground for the distribution of food and emergencies to the affected areas, and thanked both FAO and WFP for the collaboration.
The Deputy Prime Minister further stated that Africa remained a priority for Italy and referred to the government’s “Mattei Plan for Africa”, which was an important global gateway for supporting the continent, and thanked FAO for the ongoing priority given to Africa. Deputy Prime Minister Tajani further added that Latin America was also a focus for the government and looked forward to collaboration with FAO to assist countries in the region.
Finally, the Deputy Prime Minister reiterated his appreciation for the good relations between Italy and FAO, as well as for the good personal relationship with the Director-General, which were crucial to achieve good results, and he looked forward to the ongoing reciprocal support.
The Director-General thanked the Deputy Prime Minister for the invitation to participate in this important G7 meeting and for the ongoing partnership with Italy, both from a multilateral perspective, as well as host country of the Organization. In particular, he thanked the Deputy Prime Minister for Italy’s support and generous financial contribution for the establishment of the Food and Agriculture Museum and Network to be opened in 2025 to coincide with the 80th Anniversary of FAO. The Director-General referred to the official launch of the logo of the FAO Museum at a special audience with His Excellency the President of Italy on 8 October, and reiterated his appreciation for the support by the Head of State for this initiative, which was of global importance both for FAO as well as Italy.
The Director-Genera reaffirmed FAO’s willingness to continue working with Italy to assist critical “hunger hotspots” such as Sudan, Lebanon and Yemen, among others, to address critical food insecurity in these regions, and beyond. In this regard, the Director-General thanked Deputy Prime Minister Tajani for his leadership and commitment for the humanitarian crisis in the Middle East, as reflected in the special session held in the context of the G7 meeting, highlighting that Italy had an important role to play as a bridge.
The Director-General commended Italy for the important outcomes achieved through the G20 Presidency in 2021, their current G7 Presidency, as well as in other international fora such as the recent Italy-Africa Summit. Finally, the Director-General thanked the government of Italy for the close collaboration on key FAO initiatives such as the Green Cities, on science and innovation, and for the Global Library of Trees and Flowers – FAO Park – at Villa Pamphili, noting that this was a legacy that would remain behind for the City of Rome as host city of FAO.
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