Italy pledged deeper cooperation with African countries on Friday during the second Italy-Africa Summit in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, the first such meeting held on African soil. Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni told dozens of African heads of state and governments that the summit would review projects in sectors including energy and infrastructure that began under Italy’s first phase of the Mattei Plan for Africa. The Mattei Plan, launched in 2024, is aimed at promoting investment-led cooperation rather than traditional aid.
Meloni, addressing leaders from across the continent, said Italy wanted to “build things together” and be “more consistent with the needs of the countries involved.” She also tied the idea of success to Italy’s relationship with African experience, reiterating that it would depend on Italy’s “ability to draw from African wisdom” and on ensuring that lessons are learned as projects move from planning to delivery.
Ethiopia’s Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed said Italy’s partnerships have provided Africa with a gateway to Europe through the cooperation pursued under the summit process. He described the moment as one for moving from dialogue to action, saying, “This is a moment to move from dialogue to action,” and adding that “By combining Africa’s energetic and creative population with Europe’s experience, technology and capital, we can build solutions that deliver prosperity to our continents and beyond.”
After the Italy-Africa Summit concludes on Friday, African leaders will remain in Addis Ababa for the annual African Union Summit that begins Saturday. Nanjala Nyabola, a Kenyan writer and political analyst, said summits like this depend on what countries do beforehand—arguing that “tangible results from such summits depend on preparations made by countries.”
Nyabola said African governments often focus on what she described as “optics instead of actually making summits a meaningful engagement,” and she urged governments not to wait to receive a list of demands. She said countries should “present the conclusions of an extended period of mapping the national needs” and then engage in dialogue to determine how those needs can be met.
Italy’s government said the Mattei Plan has directly involved 14 African nations since it was launched two years earlier, and that it has launched or advanced around 100 projects in sectors described as crucial. Those areas include energy and the climate transition, agriculture and food security, physical and digital infrastructure, health care, water, culture and education, training, and the development of artificial intelligence.