Meloni Positions Italy’s Mattei Plan Onto the EU Global Gateway

On 20 June 2025, a top-level meeting among Italy, the European Union (EU) and the African Union (AU) at the Villa Doria Pamphilj in Rome. The Meeting was co-chaired by Italian President Georgia Meloni, the European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and the African Union Commission Chair Ali Youssouf.

President Meloni underscored that Italy’s #MatteiPlan is now fully integrated within the larger EU Global Gateway Initiative (GGI), thus extending Italy’s international development policy into India, Middle-East and beyond. She underscored that the Meeting represents a ‘fundamental step in the internationalization of the Mattei Plan’, underlining the ‘methodological shift in the EU-AU partnership’ which is evolving ‘from the traditional top-down approach to the realization of concrete projects under shared development goals and shaped by dialogue.’

President Von der Leyen emphasized that Africa is one of the focal points of #GGI, with about USD 150 billion out of a total of USD 300 billion earmarked for the emerging continent brimming with opportunities. She also took the opportunity to report on some new and ongoing projects in Africa.

The #BlueRaman fiber link which will link Djibouti, Somalia, Kenya and Tanzania. Eventually, it will add more bandwidth between Europe, East Africa and the Middle-East in support of the #digitalization drive across Africa.

In the same vein, Italy has launched the #AI Hub for Sustainable Development at the UNDP HQ which was initiated under Italy’s G7 presidency in 2024. The AI Hub is a flagship initiative under the Mattei Plan and plans to involve some 500,000 African startups in the first three years.

Taking a broader view, the EU, Gulf Countries and India are pushing for the realization of the India – Middle-East – Europe Corridor (IMEC). The cooperation axis between EU and GCC is thus being consolidated. The African Development Bank (AfDB) is said to be ready to provide financial support for this mega project.

Similarly, Italy is supporting the #LobitoCorridor initially promoted by the G7 #PG2I and EU #GGI. Through the Cassa Depositi e Prestiti (CDP) and SACE, Italy will provide USD 270 million in financing for the construction of the 800-km railway from Chingola, Zambia to Luacano, Angola. The USA has already injected USD 4 billion into the Lobito Corridor which provides vital access to #CriticalMinerals in the Central African #Copperbelt region.

AUC Chair Youssouf welcomed the efforts to align the #MatteiPlan, #GlobalGateway with the objectives and aspirations encapsulated within the AU’s #Agenda2063 and the African Continental Free Trade Area (#AfCFTA). On the sidelines of the Meeting, AUC Chair Youssouf also had a working session with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) MD Kristalina Georgieva on 21 June 2025. He reiterated Africa’s stance regarding the cost of capital caused by a slanted sovereign rating methodology and sees a better representation of Africa in multilateral institutions as a way to correct such bias.

In the end, all parties appeared on the same wavelength when it comes to ‘less talk and more action’. Through socio-economic upliftment, Italy and EU plan to kill two birds with one stone: achieve economic gains and stem the illegal migration tide. Finally, Meloni also emphasized the preferred approach via equity financing, as opposed to debt financing, in order to ensure more viable projects without adding to the public debt burden.