'Great interest in start-ups, automotive and training'

"It is a constructive dialogue for both of us: the Saudi Investment Minister, Khalid Al-Falih, and the other ministers we met in Riyadh are very interested in the Lombard development model. But we did not go there to give lessons: they have great skills and competences and, above all, they have a very clear idea of the development they want to undertake and a precise project to do it. Behind this project, there are many possible collaborations'. Attilio Fontana, President of the Lombardy Region, has just returned from the institutional mission to Riyadh organised by the Region itself and says he is very satisfied with the results achieved.

Have you signed official agreements?

No, but we would like to finalise some memoranda in the coming weeks. The most important thing is that we have opened or consolidated important channels of dialogue in all areas. I really appreciated their concreteness: immediately after our return, they wanted to organise an online meeting to discuss three topics in particular: start-up, training and automotive.

Why so much interest in Lombardy?

I think they saw in our development project, in our concreteness, a suitable model for their vision. Moreover, there are some important points of contact, for example, in 2029 they will host the Asian Winter Games and in 2030 they will host the Expo. So they are interested not only in our model for managing these kinds of events, but also in the issues of their legacy and urban regeneration. Our privileged channel with Saudi Arabia began some time agoafter a meeting with their ambassador in Italy, during which we realised that we have many points in common and a common idea of development. Then, at the beginning of September, Minister Al-Falih came to visit Milan and we deepened this dialogue, which then continued in Riyadh with the Ministers of Industry, Sport, Culture and Education.