Cison di Valmarino, October 22, 2025 – Today, Wednesday, October 22, marked the end of the three-day IX Forum Pymes, an international event that brought delegations, ambassadors, and institutional representatives from Latin American countries to Castelbrando, along with numerous Italian companies.
The President of Assocamerestero, the Treviso-Belluno|Dolomiti Chamber of Commerce and Venicepromex, Mario Pozza, expressed his great satisfaction with the success of the initiative, which created an opportunity to present the beauty of the area and the excellence of the companies that make up its productive fabric to such important guests and delegations.
I am certain- he said- that these days of discussion and networking will give rise to new opportunities for collaboration and business, based on trust and mutual understanding. New missions abroad will soon be launched,– he added-with the aim of creating further relationships, strengthening collaboration, and promoting international dialogue between our companies and foreign markets.
The final morning, hosted in the prestigious Teatro Magno in Castelbrando and moderated by Mediaset journalist and presenter Gaia Padovan, offered an intense moment of reflection on economic relations between Italy and Latin America, with a particular focus on the tools and opportunities for Italian small and medium-sizenterprises interested in these markets.
After the opening remarks by President Mario Pozza, ICE President Matteo Zoppas and IILA Head of Italian Cooperation Mauro Camicia took the floor, introducing the theme of the day: “Tools for SMEs in the Latin American market.”
Statement by ICE President Matteo Zoppas
The presence of so many entrepreneurs from a strategic area such as Latin America takes on even greater significance in the current international context, which is pushing us to diversify our markets beyond the United States. In 2024, Italy exported over €20 billion to Latin America, with a 6.6% increase compared to the previous year; in the first seven months of 2025, exports stood at €12.2 billion, with the agricultural machinery, food processing, and pharmaceutical sectors among the leading sectors, but the growth potential for Made in Italy remains high. ICE is a key infrastructure for promoting Italian excellence abroad: every year, we welcome 11,000 foreign operators to Italy and accompany 3,500 companies to international markets. In Latin America, there are three desks in Ecuador, Peru, and Uruguay: in the first nine months of 2025 alone, ICE provided 1,226 services and already has 28 initiatives planned between 2025 and 2026.
We applaud Mario Pozza, President of Assocamerestero and the Treviso-Belluno|Dolomiti Chamber of Commerce, and the entire organization for their work on the IX Foro Pymes, carried out in collaboration with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
This was followed by speeches from authoritative speakers who, from different but complementary perspectives, offered a broad and concrete vision of the opportunities for economic collaboration between the two continents. Domenico Mauriello, Secretary General of Assocamerestero, Aurora Zabotto of SACE, Federica Ingrosso of SIMEST, Mario Volpe, former Professor of Economic Policy at Ca’ Foscari University in Venice, and Giulio Mattiazzi, President of Sherpa Srl, a spin-off of the University of Padua, explored topics ranging from new economic and financial scenarios to technological innovation pathways for SME growth.
The proceedings were closed by Marco Rago, Legal Advisor for Economic Diplomacy and Development at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation, as well as Deputy Delegate of the Italian Government to the IILA.
Statement by Marco Rago, Legal Advisor for Economic Diplomacy and Development at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation, as well as Deputy Delegate of the Italian Government to the IILA
The Italy-Latin America Forum for Small and Medium-Sized Enterprises, currently being held in Castelbrando, in the heart of the Veneto region, has seen the participation of representatives from 11 Latin American countries, Latin American embassies, and the entire Italian system, including MAECI, ICE, SACE, SIMEST, and companies from across the Veneto region, which are here and have opened their doors to proudly showcase Italian EXPERTISE.
This is a striking example of the implementation of the Italian export strategy desired by Minister Tajani: not only to preserve export quotas in existing countries, but also and above all to expand export markets. Latin America is our natural outlet due to the historical ties that bind us as peoples and the complementary nature of our trade relations.
Therefore, the presence of the Latin American business world and the Italian production system demonstrates the great potential that must be nurtured on a daily basis in order to build confidence in a stable and lasting partnership between production systems for mutual development.
