Published by Global Banking & Finance Review®
Posted on February 14, 2026
2 min readLast updated: February 14, 2026
Add as preferred source on GoogleItaly offers debt suspension to African nations hit by climate events, aiming to enhance cooperation and support development projects.
MILAN, Feb 14 (Reuters) - Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni said that Italy and its African partners had focused their latest talks on the continent's debt burden, with Rome offering countries a chance to suspend repayments when hit by extreme climate events.
"Today, once again, we focused on an issue that is central for Africa, which is debt," Meloni said late on Friday at the close of the second Italy–Africa meeting in Addis Ababa.
"We have launched a broad initiative on debt conversion for joint development projects. To this, we are adding the introduction of debt‑suspension clauses for those nations affected by extreme climate events," she added.
Meloni is due to attend on Saturday the plenary session of the 39th ordinary meeting of the Assembly of Heads of State and Government of the African Union in Addis Ababa.
She did not give details on how the proposed suspension mechanism would work or which states might take it up.
Italy has made cooperation with African countries a cornerstone of its foreign policy, particularly through its "Mattei Plan," which Rome says aims to build long‑term partnerships in energy, agriculture and infrastructure.
(Reporting by Giselda VagnoniEditing by Tomasz Janowski)
Debt suspension refers to the temporary halting of debt repayments, often during times of crisis, allowing countries or entities to manage financial burdens more effectively.
Climate finance initiatives involve funding and investment aimed at supporting projects that address climate change, including renewable energy and sustainable development.
Emerging markets are economies that are in the process of rapid growth and industrialization, often characterized by increasing investment opportunities and improving economic conditions.
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