Zanetti: ‘In the South, the Blue Economy should be the driving force behind the new geography of growth’
Mario Zanetti, Confindustria’s Special Adviser on the Maritime Economy. “We need investment and streamlining. Geography alone is not enough; the maritime economy must be a pillar of the country’s industrial policy.”
“The maritime economy is a priority for the development of Southern Italy, which can act as a driving force for the country’s competitiveness and growth.” The blue economy is a sector that Mario Zanetti knows well, in his role as Special Adviser to Confindustria on the maritime economy, President of Confitarma and Chief Executive of Costa Cruises. “Italia is a manufacturing and processing nation; 60 per cent of its international trade is transported by sea. The volume of goods handled each year in Italian ports exceeds 500 million tonnes, and the maritime economy is worth 224.9 billion euros. The wealth generated by the sector has increased by almost 16 per cent, with a growth rate approximately 2.5 times the national average.” The sector’s significance is also demonstrated by labour force figures: “There are over one million people directly employed, with growth in ‘blue’ jobs four times that of the overall total. Not only that: every euro generated in the blue economy has a multiplier effect of 1.8 times. The potential for Italia, and for Southern Italy in particular, is clear.”
For the South, which overlooks the Mediterranean, this phase presents major opportunities for growth, to the benefit of the whole country. Are we able to seize them?
The Mediterranean accounts for 1 per cent of the world’s waters and 27 per cent of maritime transport. The southern port system handles between 47 per cent and 50 per cent of total national maritime traffic. The ports of Southern Italy handle 51 per cent of domestic container traffic and 52 per cent of Ro-Ro traffic, i.e. road-on-ro-ro. Added to this is tourism, with cruise traffic accounting for almost 20 per cent of the total in the Mediterranean. These figures clearly demonstrate the South’s role as an industrial hub for the Mediterranean.
A strategic geographical location: how can it be turned into a real asset for industrial policy?
Geography alone is not enough. Today, the maritime economy must be regarded as a lever of industrial policy because it affects the resilience of supply chains, energy security, the digitalisation of trade flows and the ability to retain value within national supply chains. The sea carries not only goods, but also energy, data, connectivity and industrial security. The blue economy is becoming a matter of economic sovereignty and technological competitiveness, alongside infrastructure and logistics, as Leopoldo Destro highlighted in yesterday’s interview in this newspaper. Southern Italy can become a comprehensive hub, a magnet for investment, at the heart not only of the European TEN-T corridors but also of international corridors, starting with the IMEC. This is where the real challenge lies, particularly in terms of competing with major ports such as Rotterdam, which alone handles more freight than all Italian ports combined. The aim must not be to compete on the size of ports and volumes of goods, but to build a more efficient and integrated system capable of capitalising on Italia’s strategic position in the Mediterranean and creating added value for the region. We must overcome these obstacles and therefore invest not only in ports but also in hinterland facilities, rail links and the last mile. Italia, in fact, is the European country with the best ratio of land area to coastline: for every kilometre of coastline, there are approximately 40 square kilometres of land. This is a unique advantage that must be harnessed.
