elezioni 2022 – Il voto all`estero

by | Sep 20, 2022 | PRIMOPIANO, This is Washington, USA, World | 0 comments

The 2022 general elections

and Italians abroad

The panel Peter Altmaier, Federal Minister of Economic Affairs and Energy of Germany, Pierre Moscovici, Commissioner for Economic and Financial Affairs, Taxation and Customs, European Commission, Brussels, Gillian Tans, President and Chief Executive Officer, Booking.com, Netherlands, Giovanni Tria, Minister of Economy and Finance of Italy, Beatrice Weder di Mauro, President, Centre for Economic Policy Research (CEPR), United Kingdom; Young Global Leader, moderated by Thorold Barker, Editor, Europe, Middle East and Africa, Wall Street Journal, United Kingdom, speaking during the Session “Strategic Economic Outlook on Europe” at the Annual Meeting 2019 of the World Economic Forum in Davos, January 23, 2019. Congress Hall – Aspen 1
Copyright by World Economic Forum / Ciaran McCrickard

Nevertheless, it is essential to note that, ever since the late 1990s and early 2000s, a large segment of highly educated Italian youth reluctantly left their land to seek better professional opportunities abroad where their intellect and skills are better appreciated and valued, thus causing over the years a significant brain drain. This trend, over the years, has further increased: for example, in 2017, one-third of the Italian citizens who moved abroad possessed university degrees, marking a  41.8 % increase since 2013. Most notably, this brain drain has negatively impacted Italy because the best and brightest did not invest their future in the homeland: according to Confindustria, and given the amount of resources Rome spends on the country’s education system, the exodus of Italian talent cost the nation approximately a whopping $17 billion annually. Therefore, any future Italian government will have to address this critical aspect: how to induce talented Italians abroad to return to Italy. In this case, the right coalition has included in its political program the need to facilitate the return of skilled Italian professionals to Italy. Lastly, another important factor that will further economically help and enrich the Italian polity is, as Representative Fucsia Nissoli eloquently said and who has for years championed this goal, to streamline efforts to give back Italian citizenship to those of Italian descent who lost it during their expatriation.

While it is uncertain which political party will win the upcoming elections on September 25th, what remains certain is that Rome must act to protect the interests of those Italian living abroad and adopt policies that encourage their return.