Angelo Amante & Crispian Malmer

BARI, Italy (Reuters). Despite the possibility of receiving billions of Euros from the European Union’s pandemic recovery fund for their country, mayors in the south of Italy should enjoy the opportunity. But, a lack project management skill could make it difficult to fully take advantage of the program.

Italy is the biggest beneficiary of the 27 EU countries and hopes to be the recipient of 191.5 billion euro ($215.5 billion) in loans and grants from the 750 billion-euro kitty.

It is a fund that focuses on the green transition, digitalization and education of the future. The recovery and resilience fund can help to modernize Italy’s economy by funding thousands of projects, particularly in the South.

Antonio Decaro (mayor of Bari, Puglia), said that this was a “unique, extraordinary opportunity” during a roadshow by the government to promote the scheme.

We need to hire qualified individuals quickly in order to keep this opportunity alive.

Andere mayors claimed they also lack staff capable of managing and drafting the projects they wish to move forward.

Leoluca Orlando (the main Sicilian city of Palermo) said that only one technical manager was authorized to sign off on EU projects bids. Gaetano manfredi, the mayor in Naples, claimed that there were no technical managers.

Orlando said that it was an absurd situation.

Italy’s south is home to just 30% of its population, barely 20% of the national economy and a mere 25% of Italy’s total GDP. The gap between the north and centre continues to grow. The EU will provide 40% funding to the south in order to catch up.

An era of severe budget cuts following 2008’s financial crisis has taken an especially heavy toll upon already-indebted Southern administrations. They have been forced to cut staff.

Bank of Italy research shows that in 2008-2018, there was a 27% decrease in the population of the south’s public sector workers, while 18.5% fell in the north. This is despite the fact that it has historically had better records in managing its resources.

ACESLERATED DECLINE

The shortage in skilled workers is already evident.

The EU rejected 31 of the last month’s proposals for irrigation projects from Sicily, which were submitted in an incredibly hurry.

Antonino Scilla heads the Mediterranean island’s agricultural department. However, he said to Reuters that stringent deadlines may be partly to blame. But, he also stated that a general lack in expertise was a major problem for his region.

“Sicily is full of gaps. The country needs skilled personnel… It requires a change in the generation. He said that the average age of state employees is 60. We need new graduates, 30-year-olds.”

The Mezzogiorno (or “noon,” as it’s called in Italian) has been far behind the rest for many decades. But, this century, the division has become more pronounced.

The south has a lower gross domestic product per head than the center-north. Unemployment is at 16.7%, compared to 6.1% in north. The youth unemployment rate is at 43.3%, compared to 20.8%.

It is hoped that the EU Fund will increase Italy’s production by 3.6% in 2026. Larger advances are expected to be made in the south.

Brussels is concerned about the performance of the region’s expenditures on regular EU structural funding.

Marco Buti said that the role of local authorities when implementing the recovery plan could be a weakness. He is the head of staff at Paolo Gentiloni, EU Economic Affairs Commissioner.

“If we take a look at the South of the Country, there’s a natural bottleneck,” said he during a trip to Italy this week. He was speaking about the absence of qualified managers.

ATTRACTING TALENT

Bari is currently home to 1,800 employees in the public service, approximately 1,000 more than was anticipated by the city’s staffing plan. Manfredi claimed that Naples needs at least 1000 additional workers in order to benefit from the EU funds.

Vittorio Colao, Innovation Minister, stated that “we know that skills are rare,” he told businessmen and dignitaries at the roadshow for government officials. It was held at a packed Bari theater.

We can only give partial assistance as a ministry but cannot do it all. My hope is for companies to pool their resources with local authorities.

Roberto Garofoli was in charge of the implementation of the national recovery plan and told the Bari audience that various state agencies would send small teams to manage the projects.

2.800 South Africans will also be employed by the government to help with programmes.

However, 800 of the qualified applicants were rejected from the first tender. Professionals complained about the 1,500 Euro per month short-term contracts.

The terms are being revised by the government.

Garofoli said that the administrative machinery is “worn out” and had lost its expertise. We inherited this problem not from the old government but decades of spending cuts. This is a huge problem you cannot solve in just a few weeks.

($1 = 0.8884 euros)