Mediterranean Forum of Local Governments and Business – 2025 Edition

Mediterranean Forum of Local Governments and Business – 2025 Edition

On November 28, 2025, on the occasion of the Mediterranean Day celebrations, the Mediterranean Forum of Local Governments and Business will be held at the Sala Salvadori of the Italian Chamber of Deputies. The event confirms the Forum’s established role as an institutional platform for dialogue among governments, diplomatic representatives, industrial actors, and strategic stakeholders engaged in Euro-Mediterranean cooperation.

The 2025 edition will host a select group of high-level diplomatic, institutional, and business leaders from Italy and Lebanon; reinforcing the Forum’s role as a strategic hub for dialogue and cooperation. Its core focus is the strengthening of economic diplomacy through industrial and commercial collaborations, involving key partners such as Confindustria Abruzzo Medio Adriatico, SIMEST, the Association of Lebanese Industrialists (ALI), and the Tripoli Chamber of Commerce and Industry (CCIAT). In a period of profound geopolitical changes in the Eastern Mediterranean, the Forum reaffirms the importance of coordinated institutional engagement and pragmatic economic partnerships to promote stability, resilience, and development between Italy, Europe, and the Eastern Mediterranean region.

The event is held under the patronage of Confindustria Abruzzo Medio Adriatico, the Province of Pescara, the Municipality of Forlì – Department of International Policies, and the Municipality of Montesilvano. The Forum continues to align with the principles of Civil Economy and the 2030 Agenda. As a think tank dedicated to cooperation among local authorities, businesses, professional orders, and civil society, it represents a strategic platform to support dialogue, economic collaboration, and stability in the Eastern Mediterranean.

The full program is available here:

Friday 28/11/2025 – Civil Economy and the 2030 Agenda,
“A Mediterranean Bridge Between Lebanon and Italy – How This Strategic Collaboration Fits Into the Eastern Mediterranean Scenario”
Location of the Event: Sala Salvadori – Italian Parliament
09:00 – 09:25 | Guest Reception
09:30 – 09:35 | Opening of the Works
Welcome from:
Matteo Redenti – Founder of the Mediterranean Forum of Local Governments and Business
Mario Micheli – Partner of the Mediterranean Forum of Local Governments and Business
Stefano Maggiani – Lobbyist and partner of the Mediterranean Forum of Local Governments and Business
09:35 – 10:05 | Institutional Greetings and General Reflections

Her Excellency Ms. Carla Jazzar, Ambassador of Lebanon to Italy
Hon. Lorenzo Cesa – President of the Italian delegation to the NATO Parliamentary Assembly (Connected)
Hon. Simone Billi – Member of the Foreign Affairs Committee of the Chamber of Deputies
Hon. Alessandro Cattaneo – Member of the Transport, Post and Telecommunications Commission
Avv.to Rossella Vitali – Chairperson of the Board of Governors of the MD Lions 108 Italy
Gen. Antonio Bettelli – Lieutenant General ITA Army Retired – UNIFIL Sector West Commander SHAAMA (LEB), United Nations
Dr. Marina Scognamiglio – Director of the Italian Trade Agency (Lebanon, Syria, Cyprus) (Connected from Beirut)

10.05- 11.50 | Round Table on Economic Collaboration Between Italy and Lebanon
Mr. Lorenzo Dattoli – President of Confindustria Abruzzo Medio Adriatico
Mr. Massimiliano Iocco – President of the Mechatronics Department of Confindustria Abruzzo Medio Adriatico
Mr. Ibrahim Foz – Vice President Chamber of Commerce and Industry of Tripoli (Lebanon)
Mr. Dany Abboud – Lebanese Industrialist & Member of the Board of The Association of Lebanese Industrialists -ALI
Mr. Raymond Mitri – Vice President of the Lebanese Anti-Corruption Task Force
Ms. Patricia Issa – Director of the Mediterranean Forum of Local Governments and Business for the East Mediterranean Region
Dr. Francesca Alicata – Head of External Relations – SIMEST SpA

11:50 – 12:00 | Final Conclusions
Moderator’s summary
Announcement of upcoming follow-up initiatives