On 13th February 2023 UNIDO ITPO Italy hosted a high-level roundtable meeting at the presence of His Excellency the Minister of Commerce and Industry of the Federal Republic of Somalia, Jibril Abdirashid Haji Abdi.

Moderated by UNIDO ITPO Italy’s Investment Promotion Expert for Somalia Francesco Pallocca, the roundtable started with the opening remarks of His Excellency the Ambassador of Italy to Somalia Alberto Vecchi, UNIDO Somalia Programme Manager Ygor Scarcia and Giuseppe Mistretta, Director for Sub-Saharan African Countries at the Italian Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation, and was concluded by a participated Q&A session after the presentations of several Italian companies, institutions and associations operating in Somalia attending the roundtable in presence as well as online.

Notably, during his keynote speech the Somali Minister officially announced the second edition of the "Italia-Somalia Business and Trade Forum", taking place in Mogadishu on 30th and 31st May 2023 with the goal to further strengthen economic cooperation between the two countries for an inclusive and sustainable industrial development, and thanked UNIDO and ITPO Italy for their continuous support in this direction.