They are looking for Italian descendants to live in Calabria

At Italy A new project has been launched which aims to repopulate the municipality of Maida, in the region of Calabria. This is an initiative to favor Italian descendants and among the benefits are support for the reconstruction of citizenship, job search and housing and the revalidation of university degrees.

The Associazione Unione Italo Discendenti nel Mondo (UID) is at the origin of the project, in collaboration with Casa Calabria, the University of Calabria (Unical) and the Calabrian municipality of Maida, in the province of Catanzaro (Calabria), where live about 4,600 inhabitants.

It is a town built on a hill, famous for a battle between France and England at the beginning of the 19th century, and because from there left the ancestors of the American journalist Gay Talese, one of the fathers of the “new journalism ”, for the United States.

“Italy needs its descendants, and Italians in the world because it is an aging country, and after the pandemic Everything has changed completely, ”Andrea Pacia, UID president, told ANSA. “But the conditions must be created for the return: we have 21 million descendants in Argentina, 42 million in Brazil, we can practically rejuvenate Italy when we want”, added.

“The proposed invitation to the repopulation of towns and small towns, and in particular the question of the entry into Italy of generations of descendants of Italians, particularly in crisis areas in Central and South America, or more generally with less development than ours, assesses the main limits and obstacles to their integration, ”explains Pacia.

The advantages of the project

The aim of the project is to create the conditions for the descendants to return and stay in Italy. With this objective, the UID spoke with businessmen, with municipalities, with Unical and other associations: “What does an Italian who comes back to Italy need? of citizenship, that he obtains housing. And work ”.

The The project will start in September and around fifteen candidates who write at UID will be selected, who will have to guarantee a six-month stay in the municipality of Maida and will be able to take Italian courses.. In addition, Unical will assess the conversion of foreign study diplomas into Italian diplomas.

Those interested will be asked how many there is, what they want and it will also be assessed if they want to stay. They must stay in Maida six months and you will be offered work in the agricultural sector (harvesting olives, grapes, among others) or in the various fields of tourism. Those who speak Spanish, Portuguese, English, have precisely because of this advantage.

“We started with Maida but we would like to replicate this project in all regions: not only Calabria is depopulated, but also regions like Friuli Venezia Giulia, because people don’t want to live in the mountains, there is a lack of housing and infrastructure.We still prefer if they are of Calabrian origin, but we are open to all, ”he added.

Maida in particular aspires to secure funds from the European Union to promote the repopulation, which will allow her to make the necessary modifications to become an attractive place of residence for the new inhabitants.

And finally, Italy favors the return of the Italians abroad through tax facilities and exemptions, both for those who wish to develop a professional activity and for those who are retired and are looking for a new horizon to enjoy their retirement.

The challenges of Italian municipalities

The obstacles to returning to Italy are identified in the low knowledge of the Italian language and culture; the fact that many descendants of Italians obtain citizenship from their ancestors but later settle in other European countries, and the uneven attraction of the socio-economic system within Italy, with preferences directed towards the north over the south and the islands.

“Italy is the only country in the world where there are no limits to recognition of citizenship but this recognition has grown considerably over time for the sole purpose of moving to European countries that speak Spanish or Portuguese, and even to North America and other European countries, ”he said. he warned.

In particular, between 1998 and 2006, 600,000 certificates of Italian nationality were issued by descent: of which 40% in Argentina, 20% in Brazil and, in Europe, particularly in France, 54% of the continent’s total) and in Switzerland ( 25%).

Candidates for citizenship in Argentina and Brazil – added the president of the Associazione Unione Italo Discendenti nel Mondo – come from the middle and upper class, with a high level of education. But the preferences go to Spain, a figure confirmed by the 550% increase in the Italian community in this country, especially in Madrid and Barcelona, ​​where half of that percentage is Italian-Argentinian.