Italy and Palestine mantain a consolidated relationship, which has strengthened over the past few years thanks to the activities of the Joint Ministerial Committee and the Joint Business Forum.
In November 2012, Italy voted in favor of recognizing Palestine as a "non-member observer state" of the United Nations and in February 2015 the Italian Parliament asked the government to recognize the Palestinian State.
The institutionalization of relations between Italy and Palestine also passes through the Joint Ministerial Committee - the latest of which was held in Rome on 9 November 2017 with the co-chairmanship of the then Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation, Hon. Angelino Alfano, and the Palestinian Foreign Minister, Riyad Malki and the participation of numerous Ministers. On this occasion, a Joint Declaration of the Foreign Ministers was adopted and 9 Agreements were signed in the areas of security training, development cooperation, the fight against illicit trade in cultural heritage, education, trade, tourism and collaboration between the diplomatic corps. The third meeting of the Joint Ministerial Committee was also the occasion for the second meeting of the Italian Palestinian Joint Business Forum, born in February of the same year under the auspices of the Consulate General of Italy and the Ministry of National Economy. The relative cooperation agreement was signed in Ramallah by Confindustria Giovani and the Palestinian Federation of Business Association on 9 February 2017 and the Forum is co-chaired by Confindustria Giovani and Bank of Palestine. While in February the signing ceremony and the first meeting of the Forum saw the participation of an Italian entrepreneurial mission, composed of 11 companies, the November meeting hosted by Confindustria Giovani in Rome saw the participation of an entrepreneurial delegation of about 20 Palestinian companies. The third meeting of the Forum will be held in Palestine in the second half of 2019 and the participation of about 30 Italian companies is expected.
In addition to the constant diplomatic commitment to the peace process negotiations in support of the "Two State Solution", Italy is one of the main donors of Palestine, of which it is recognized as a reliable interlocutor with a commitment of over 450 M Euro starting from 1985.
The intervention of the Italian Cooperation is aimed at supporting the commitments assumed by Palestine in the political sphere and it is in line with the Palestinian National Development Plan, with the principles of the Code of Conduct on the division of tasks within the development policy of the EU and it is progressively aligning with the current Joint Programming of the EU Member States.
The Italian Cooperation Program in progress focuses on three main sectors:
a) Gender and Social Protection (EU Lead Donor)
b) Health (EU Lead Donor)
c) Economic Development (Active Donor EU)
and it is the result of the dialogue and the joint work with the competent PNA Ministries, Palestinian civil society, the Delegation of the European Union and Member States, the main UN agencies and the World Bank.
Among the most interesting activities for Italian entrepreneurs, Italy is an Active Donor of the EU in Economic Development: in addition to the Credit Support for the electricity sector (EUMP Program) and to Small and Medium Enterprises, the START UP Palestine Program was launched in 2014 and the FIN-PAL-Financial Inclusion in Palestine program was launched in 2016, aimed at promoting the economic growth and the creation of new employment opportunities for economically and geographically marginalized groups - East Jerusalem, Area C, the Gaza Strip - favoring their financial inclusion.
The portfolio of initiatives has a total value of 70 M Euro with a strong emphasis on the promotion of Italian machinery and technology, thus contributing to the development of commercial relations.
This development also passes through a dense network of contacts managed by the Consulate General, with the support of the Ramallah ICE antenna, aimed at disseminating information on business opportunities and match-making between entrepreneurs, also – but not only – with the organization of B2B meetings in the framework of the aforementioned Italian Palestinian Joint Business Forum. Extensive assistance is also provided in relation to customs issues and commercial regulations on the particular Palestinian situation.
