President Hakainde Hichilema last evening joined several African heads of state and government who attended the second edition of the Italy-Africa summit in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.
President Hichilema is in Addis Ababa to attend the 39th ordinary session of the assembly of heads of state and government of the African Union.
ZANIS reports that the President is accompanied by Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation, Mulambo Haimbe and his Water Development and Sanitation counterpart, Collins Nzovu and senior government officials.
The summit was co-hosted by Italy’s Prime Minister, Giorgia Meloni, who is also President of the Council of Ministers of Italy and the Prime Minister of Ethiopia, Abiy Ahmed Ali.
The cooperation between African countries and Italy is hinged on the Mattei Plan, which was launched by Italy in 2024. It is a strategic, non-predatory partnership framework designed to foster long-term, mutually beneficial cooperation between Italy, the European Union (EU) and African nations.
Currently, the cooperation is focused on four major strategic initiatives, one of which includes the construction of the Lobito Corridor linking west and east Africa, connecting Angola, the Democratic Republic of Congo and Zambia.
The plan focuses on economic development, energy, agriculture, and infrastructure, aiming to address root causes of migration while protecting Italian influence through equal partnership.
The core pillars of the Mattei plan are centered on six main areas, namely education and training, health, agriculture, water, energy, and infrastructure.
The plan’s economic and energy focus leverages Italian expertise and state-backed entities like the ENI, Italy’s largest industrial company and a major integrated energy multinational, to drive investment, particularly in energy and infrastructure.
Unlike traditional aid-driven models, the Mattei plan is framed as a “non-predatory” partnership, with projects designed in collaboration with African nations to foster shared prosperity.
The Mattei Plan now includes the direct involvement of 14 nations with more than one billion Euros in resources which Italy has already committed to the projects on the African continent and synergy with the Global Gateway, valued at over 1.2 billion Euros.
Other initiatives of the plan are the development of coffee production chains in several African countries, the extension of the Blue-Raman submarine cable to East Africa, the maritime backbone that connects India to European economies via the Middle East and the Mediterranean, and artificial intelligence through the Centre of Sustainable Development of Rome, which will involve hundreds of African startups to apply technology across various sectors of the plan.
