Georgetown University in Qatar and Education Above All (EEA) jointly hosted a talk on April 16, 2019 titled “Development Cooperation: The Italian approach” by Her Excellency Emanuela Claudia Del Re, Italian Vice Minister for Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation. The event, organized in cooperation with the Embassy of Italy in Doha, was attended by students, faculty, staff, members of the Education City community and professionals working in international development.

In her talk, Vice Minister Del Re addressed current and future challenges of international development cooperation, highlighting her vision for shared development. “Our goal,” she said, “is to create a two-way donor-beneficiary relationship instead of a one-way project, and build with our partners a privileged relationship of shared values which can generate mutual benefits and long-term structural solutions.”  In this context, she shared Italy’s best practices and talked about the reform of the Italian system of development cooperation which enabled a more effective and integrated governance structure, including a new Italian Agency for Development Cooperation as well as more consistency in implementation.

Vice Minister Del Re also elaborated on the pressing challenge of conflicts and migration, and on the positive role of diaspora communities in bridging countries of origin and countries of residence. She also called for a greater involvement of the private sector in development cooperation strategies and programs, praising its leverage for social and economic inclusion. On specific thematic priorities, she confirmed that “Italy considers education to be one of the principal sustainable development goals of the UN 2030 Agenda and looks forward to further develop partnerships in this field with Qatar.”

Remarking on the importance of promoting interaction between students and representatives of Government and policy makers, Dean Dallal commented: “our students go on to be future leaders and diplomats, and learning how to be fair, thoughtful, and innovative in their future roles requires seeing first hand how leaders behave, present their ideas, garner support, and encounter challenges, and we are pleased to give them the opportunity to engage with world leaders and diplomats such as Vice Minister Del Re.”

In the field of cooperation, Italy ranks fourth among the G7 in terms of percentage of Gross National Income spent on Official Development Assistance.

Her Excellency Emanuela Claudia Del Re was appointed Vice Minister for Foreign Affairs with responsibility for International Cooperation in August 2018. A scholar and sociologist, she is an expert in conflict studies, migration, refugee issues, and minorities, as well as religious phenomena. She has carried out longitudinal research in conflict areas and areas in transition since 1990. A former Jean Monnet Professor and course co-coordinator for European Culture(s), Citizenship(s) and Governance at the University La Sapienza of Rome, she also was a guest lecturer for  various prestigious Italian and international masters and Ph.D. courses. She is the prolific author of a number of peer reviewed essays and books, and has directed seven documentary films.