Sicily, green light for task force to attract investment

A task force to attract new companies to Sicily and increase investments. A measure already envisaged by the Sicilian regional government's Stability Law is now taking shape. The regional government, led by Renato Schifani, has given the go-ahead for the measure, which will now have to go through the Sicilian Regional Assembly's Budget Committee. "My government is on the side of those who invest and create jobs in Sicily and, now, with the task force for the attraction of investments, we are creating a tool to promote policies, sources of financing, and unbureaucratisation activities for all those who want to start up a business in Sicily,' said the president of the Sicilian Region.

The task force also has the task of disseminating outside the region the national and regional subsidies available in Sicily and the other measures to support private investment in the island's territory, offering support and technical assistance to investors, and promoting coordination activities between public bodies to facilitate the processes of business start-ups. This structure, says Economy Councillor Alessandro Dagnino, who proposed the scheme to the council, "is one of the pillars of the regional government's policy for the development of private investment, together with the incentives for business combinations provided for in the last Stability Law and the creation of simplified bureaucracy areas, which are currently being examined by the Sicilian Regional Assembly. The body is conceived as a mission structure that will be composed of highly qualified professionals and will pursue the objective of attracting investors from outside the area in a streamlined and dynamic manner'.

The new structure will be composed of five experts of high and documented professionalism, at least ten years, in legal, economic-business and financial matters with particular regard to the business sector and to the attraction and promotion of investments. One of the five members will have the role of coordinator, but each of the committee members will be able to work individually on the individual activities entrusted to them within an annual programme that will be submitted to the councillor for the Economy and must be consistent with the government's economic policy objectives. The appointment will last three years, renewable; the all-inclusive annual remuneration foreseen is 60,000 euro each.

Irfis, the regional finance company, will draw up a notice to collect expressions of interest for participation in the short list from which the councillor for the Economy will select the five professionals who will become part of the task force. A scientific support committee will also be set up, made up of twenty members who will be appointed for three years free of charge: ten will be chosen by the government, another ten will be selected from among the representatives of business associations and trade unions.