On Monday, 29-1-2024, an African-Italian summit was held in Italy’s capital. Its primary objective was to launch a new phase of cooperation between the two sides, especially on energy issues.
The summit was attended by 26 African presidents, several African ministers, European politicians, and representatives from the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund. Several issues were raised during the summit in Rome, which was chaired by Giorgia Meloni, Italy’s prime minister, including illegal immigration, food security, climate change, and energy.
The proceedings reflected both greed and ambition. Today, an array of international powers is fighting over Africa, and France’s military, political, and economic footprint is being reduced after its influence had been entrenched for many decades.
Giorgia Meloni, the first woman to lead an Italian government, is ever-present in Africa, and Africa is ever-present in her thoughts. The influx of migrants from Africa is a chronic source of anxiety in Italy, and while every country has energy concerns it is a matter of particular significance in Italy. Indeed, this country is as shaped by geography as it has contributed to shaping history, and history constantly weighs on every politician.
Giorgia Meloni, representing the Italian right, had lashed out against France, calling it a colonial state that never stopped plundering Africa’s wealth and directing accusations at French President Emmanuel Macron. She now aims to present an alternative model for managing Europe’s relationship with Africa. Meloni repeatedly emphasizes that essentially, France is the cause of the migration of African youth towards Europe and that Italy is the victim.
Meloni's right-wing government has set its sights on energy opportunities, specifically in oil and gas. Her first foreign visit was to Algeria, where an agreement for cooperation between the Algerian company Sonatrach and the Italian company Eni was signed. She also visited Libya and facilitated agreements between Eni and the Libyan National Oil Corporation. Meloni also visited Tunisia, where she addressed the issue of African migrants leaving for Europe through the North African country, which is close to Italy, and she has strived to get the European Union involved in her joint initiative with Tunisia that aims to curb migration.
At the African-Italian summit in Rome, Italy made many promises to African leaders, pledging to launch projects in various fields, especially infrastructure, education, and health, for which she claimed five billion euros would be allocated. However, African Union Chairperson Moussa Faki stressed “the need to match actions with words.”
Africa has been showered with promises from Europe, the United States, China, and Russia. However, all of these powers have their sights on Africa's riches, and they are focused on curbing irregular migration coming from the continent. The countries of the Sahel and Sahara, where military coups have erupted, have become targets for Russia, which is taking aggressive steps to expand its influence. However, this vast desert resource-rich region is plagued by violence and poverty. Recent developments include the military council governing the Republic of Mali announcing the cancellation of its deal with the "Azawad Movement" based in the north of the country, which had been signed under Algerian auspices, and Mali, Burkina Faso, and Niger’s withdrawal from ECOWAS.
I was surprised by the name that the Italian government chose for the initiative it laid out at the Rome Summit, the "Mattei Plan." Who was this man whom Giorgia Meloni chose its plan that promises to traverse deserts and jungles after? Enrico Mattei was a historic Italian figure who played a prominent role in shaping Italy’s politics and economy, from abroad, during the 1950s. He fought the Nazism and Fascism in Italy and became an industrialist at an early age.
He opposed Western hegemony over oil supplies. After successfully consolidating the Italian oil entities into a single institution, Eni, he adopted a new policy vis a vis oil-producing countries. He also worked to establish strong ties with oil-consuming countries to break the dominance of the major Western companies, known as the "Seven Sisters," over production and marketing. He visited China and met Mao Zedong, went to the Soviet Union and met its leaders, and met with President Gamal Abdel Nasser in Egypt, as well as visiting Libya, where he met with local politicians.
I remember when he visited us at our home in the town of Gharifa, alongside officials from the Fazzan province, and had lunch with us in 1958. He was the first European person I had seen in my life. The man came under fire from different directions.
He led a global campaign to reshape the relationship between the countries that owned the oil fields and the countries they operated in. He demanded that exporting countries receive a larger share than the companies extracting the oil and that the technology used to extract the oil be transferred to the exporting countries. He drew France’s hostility after openly supporting the Algerian revolution. He met its leaders in the Soviet Union, Egypt, Libya, and Tunisia and pushed the Italian media to support the Algerian revolution, causing a split within the Italian government and creating tensions between Italy and France.
Enrico Mattei did not limit his efforts to the realms of oil and politics. He also led a project that was both theological and political, organizing a forum for the three Abrahamic religions: Christianity, Islam, and Judaism. The prominent Italian thinker and politician, Giorgio La Pira, a member of the Christian Democratic Party, supported his endeavor. Enrico Mattei believed that these religions, which were all born in the Mediterranean, had the potential to bring peace to its shores. Mattei's opponents launched a fierce campaign against him, branding him a man with dangerous ambitions.
Why did Giorgia Meloni, the right-wing Italian Prime Minister, choose to name her plan for Africa after this left-wing revolutionary? Did she believe that it would be a good idea because Enrico Mattei was a friend to Africa, especially to Libya, which is home to an underwater gas pipeline that reaches Italy, and Algeria, which exports gas to Italy through a pipeline that passes through Tunisia and was named after Enrico Mattei? Did she choose him because of enmity with France? Maybe she wanted to signal to African leaders that Italy is a European friend committed to helping Africa and that it has no colonial ambitions. Is she telling Africa: “Your old ally Enrico Mattei will policy towards your continent?”
The tragedy of Africa today is that many of its countries are fragmented, riddled with corruption, and plagued by coups. At the same time, several powers are competing to get their hands on its resources. Foreign powers never cease to make promises and pledge to launch grandiose projects in this resource-rich but hungry continent. It is always waiting for help that never arrives, neither from within nor from without. Summit after summit, all making the same promises. The poet Abu al-Tayyib al-Mutanabbi once said: "I am wealthy, and promises are my possessions.” The same is true for Africa.
