Rome. Deputy Minister Edmondo Cirielli chairs the 7th meeting of the 2024 Joint Development Cooperation Committee

Today, the Italian Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs responsible for International Cooperation, Edmondo Cirielli, chaired the 7^th meeting of the Joint Development Cooperation Committee for 2024, which approved a package of interventions worth a total of almost EUR 200 million.

In line with the commitments announced by Italian Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs Tajani during the G7 Development Ministers' Meeting in Pescara, the distribution of resources available for the Middle East in 2024 was updated, which will make it possible to consolidate Italy's humanitarian assistance activities in Lebanon and Gaza.

The initiatives approved by the Joint Committee are an operational follow-up to the approval of the 2024 Programming. A number of important donations have been approved in favour of Africa, regarding food security in Libya and Egypt, economic development in Senegal, Mali, and Guinea, the preservation of cultural heritage in Ethiopia, the Democratic Republic of Congo, and Uganda, and energy transition and the protection of marine ecosystems in Tunisia and Mozambique.

Initiatives were also approved in favour of the reconstruction of Gaza, Palestine, agricultural development and food security in Ukraine, the enhancement of the archaeological heritage in Iraq, the coffee and cocoa sectors in El Salvador, sustainable agriculture in ASEAN countries, and economic development in the Western Balkans. The Joint Committee also gave a favourable opinion on the proposal for financing by Cassa Depositi e Prestiti of the Khan Bank JSC operating in Mongolia to support sustainable development projects.

Among the contributions to international organisations approved were those to Africa through the CIHEAM in Bari to strengthen agrifood ecosystems in Ghana and to support the Italy-Tunisia strategic partnership on food security; contributions to the International Training Centre of the International Labour Organisation based in Turin, UNICEF, WFP and the International Italo-Latin American Organisation. Also worth mentioning is the approval of a project to strengthen cooperation between MENA and Balkan countries in the water sector, also in view of the "Euro-Mediterranean Water Forum" to be held in Rome in 2026.