(Adnkronos) – Italy and Senegal enjoy “solid” relations and want to bolster cooperation in the agricultural and food security sectors, agriculture minister Francesco Lollobrigida and Senegalese counterpart Cheikhou Oumar Ba agreeed at talks in Rome on Thursday that focused on the public-private ‘Area Africa’ programme to boost agrifood systems, the agriculture ministry said in a statement.
“Lollobrigida underlined the strategic importance of the partnership with Dakar, confirming Italy’s willingness to continue working with Senegalese authorities to accelerate the implementation of initiatives already underway and to identify new opportunities for collaboration for the benefit of agricultural producers and local communities,” said the statement.
During the meeting, Lollobrigida expressed his appreciation for Senegal’s support for Italy’s former agriculture minister Maurizio Martina’s candidacy for Director-General of the Rome-based United Nations Food and Agriculture Organisation, according to the statement.
Ba expressed the new Senegalese government’s praise for the ‘Area Africa’ project – launched under Italy’s 5.5 billion euro ‘Mattei Plan’ to propel the continent’s economic development – which is viewed as an important tool for supporting the primary sector’s development and for boosting food security, the statement continued.
The project centres on training, technical assistance, technology transfer and the development of sustainable agricultural supply chains.
“Italy confirmed its full willingness to collaborate at every stage of the process, guaranteeing the necessary technical and institutional support,” said the statement.
Italy’s overseas development department is contributing 67 million euros to Senegal under the programme alongside an investment of the same amount from a private partner, the statement said.
The scheme will focus on Senegal’s fertile tropical southern Casamance region and will involve the Mediterranean Agronomic Institute of Bari (CIHEAM) in Italy’s southern city of Bari and leading Italian organisations such as its agro-industrial BF Group, the statement concluded.
