bahrainthismonth.com | NOVEMBER 2026 ITALY IN BAHRAIN 21 How has your career shaped your diplomacy, and what surprised you about Italy? This is my first ambassadorial posting. A lot of people associate me, rightly so, with my stint at the Labour Market Regulatory Authority, but I spent 13 years at the Economic Development Board, rising from business development officer to deputy chief executive. That plays a big role in what I do here, because a big chunk of an embassy’s work is to promote economic cooperation, investments going both ways, trade and scouting for opportunities for Bahraini businesses. My time at the LMRA helps me understand how government systems work and approach them in a manner that makes life easier for both sides. In this day and age, the economy drives everything. Imports, exports and mutual investments on the ground are big catalysts for government-to-government cooperation. What struck me was the level of cordial and close relationships between the two countries’ leaderships. There is mutual respect, direct contact and warm friendships at leadership level. That makes my job, from a diplomatic point of view, rather easy, but shifts my focus to the economy. We now need to translate that cordial diplomatic relationship into a mutually beneficial economic relationship. How would you describe Bahrain–Italy relations and their recent progress? There hasn’t been a year as phenomenal as 2025 in the relationship between our countries. Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni visited Bahrain twice: once in January and once in December to attend the GCC Summit. His Majesty King Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa visited Rome in July, while His Royal Highness the Crown Prince and Prime Minister visited in late September. I also had several ministerial delegations. No ambassador could ask for more than this. The relationship is on a high. The most significant element was the Strategic Investment and Collaboration Partnership signed during His Royal Highness’s September visit. That lays the ground for some very important approaches to investment between the two countries. It sets the framework for how it is done, and right now we are working on that. Where do you see the strongest opportunities for business and investment? Italy is an industrial powerhouse, particularly when it comes to engineering and parts manufacturing. There are many medium-sized companies producing parts and machinery used in other industries around Europe and Italy. These are prime candidates for operating in Bahrain, where operating costs are lower, energy is available and they can serve a wider clientele around the world. Similarly, they could be very good candidates for Bahraini investments to increase their size and resilience. Trieste, in north-eastern Italy, is a big logistical hub serving Eastern Europe and the Balkans. That is something we should be looking at. We work closely with the EDB, Bahrain Chamber of Commerce and Industry and Ministry of Industry and Commerce. All we can do is bring opportunities to businesses, facilitate their mission and overcome obstacles. It is in the hands of the private sector to make it work. What would you most like Italians to discover about Bahrain? Italy is a collection of locales. Every 50 kilometres can present new topography, different climates, vegetation and even cuisine. That is where Bahrain becomes interesting. Its distinctive flavour, activities and ways of life are similar to visiting a medium-sized Italian city and seeing how that particular place lives. I know an Italian person who visited Bahrain once for business and now takes his family there for a holiday every single year without fail. I find that fascinating. When I asked why, he said: “I feel relaxed and I feel I can deal with the people and I feel at home.” What have you come to admire most about Italy and its people? The Italians truly know how to enjoy life and have their priorities right. The first thing you admire and try to adopt is the value of self-care, serenity and one’s peace. Things get done, but urgency here is not like urgency in the rest of the world. It is a way of life to not rush and not stress. The second thing I truly admire is the general warmth with which people deal with anyone who doesn’t look like them or speak their language. You see them truly try to communicate, understand what you need and help however they can. You can go from being strangers to being familiar within one meeting. I wouldn’t easily use the word friend, because friendships are built over time. That familiarity makes my life and my job a lot easier. They warm up to you, and all you need to be is genuine. Which lesser-known destinations would you recommend to Bahraini visitors? There is a little Medieval village about an hour outside Rome where I wouldn’t mind being lost and not found again. It is on top of a mountain, with roads and alleys that have been there for hundreds of years. I guess what I’m saying is that there are hundreds of hidden gems like this all over Italy. Drive half an hour or 40 minutes outside Florence and you have the Tuscan rolling hills, villages and towns worth a day each. If you spent a month, you wouldn’t cover them all. I always recommend landing in a big city, enjoying it and then spreading out. Get in a car and get deliberately lost. You will see salt-of-the-earth Italians going about their daily business, very happy for you to visit their town. How closely do you work with your Italian counterpart? We have a lot of contact. We both assumed our responsibilities at the same time, with an overlap of one week between him landing in Bahrain and me coming to Italy. We met and had dinner during that week. I have dinner with him every time I go to Bahrain; I had one last week. We talk every week or 10 days. What lasting legacy would you like to leave? We have the foundation at leadership level and through the agreements signed between the two countries. Now my job, and that of my colleague, the Italian Ambassador to Bahrain, is to inform businesses, work with them and get them to avail themselves of these special conditions and mutual investment agreements. That is the legacy. Once an Italian business comes and sets up shop in Bahrain, it doesn’t make a difference whether I am still an ambassador or not. Similarly, when Bahraini investments come to Italy, these things change people’s lives. They create jobs, wealth and further human interaction. These things outlast civil servants such as myself. His Excellency with Sergio Mattarella, President of the Italian Republic
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