Special Economic Zones (Z.E.S.): a conference about the CIPNES-Gallura Strategic Plan

 The conference organized at the Geovillage of Olbia by CIPNES Gallura was a success. Special Economic Zones have been mentioned: areas that are limited and defined by laws in which bureaucratic, administrative and fiscal processes are simplified in function of an easy establishment of new economic realities.

A crowded room with institutions, professionals and entrepreneurs listened carefully to what was analyzed by the numerous speakers of the conference, which was also accredited by the Order of Olbia Tempio Accountants and by the Doctors of Agronomists.

To play host the Mayor of Olbia, Settimo Nizzi, which after the institutional greetings has emphasized the active role and the collaboration that the Municipality of Olbia has made available to facilitate the implementation of a strategic plan for the Special Economic Zone creation.

The conference continued with the Pier Luigi Caria intervention, Regional Councilor for Agriculture, who, on behalf of the whole Council, expressed the utmost willingness to pursue the objective, which provides for the creation of Zes in Sardinia, through appropriate regional framework rules delegating to industrial consortia the details and legislative project implementation.

Then the floor has given to the president of CIPNES, Mario Gattu, who thanked the attendances and highlighted how the Cala Saccaia body is particularly committed to the territory growth and how important is the of the Special Economic Zone institution.

More detailed and full of normative references was the intervention of the of CIPNES general director, Aldo Carta, who precisely exposed the history of the Zes, which would have been foreseen, with different names, already in the special statute of the Autonomous Region of Sardinia in 1948.

It is with the Port Authorities reform in 2016 that the topic has is back to being topical and the depressed economy regions of the South will be the ones that will be able to benefit significantly from the new legislative instrument.

Aldo Carta also recalled that the Sardinia region with resolution n. 21/4 of 15 April 2016, shared with the Municipality of Olbia the need to activate a "non-closed" free customs zone with an attached authorization within the "functional inprovement" regime, in line with the choice of the Olbia Municipality, has identified Cipnes-Gallura Industrial Consortium the managing entity.

The conference continued with the speeches of Antonio Catgiu, deputy Director of CIPNES and Gian Paolo Saba, from the CIPNES European Programming Office, who described the state of fact and the strategic plan of the Institution. CIPNES intends to allocate to the Special Economic Zone about 300 hectares, proposing itself as a true partner in support of the enterprises, able to coordinate functions, services and resources implementing on local reality the planning idea placed at the base of the legislative initiative on Zes, in order to value the 4 driving sectors of the consortium agglomeration: agroalimentary, logistic, nautical and natural stone industry.

The speech of Prof. Aldo Berlinguer, full professor of Comparative Law at the University of Cagliari and maximum expert of the subject in question, as well as curator of the in-depth study "Ports, retroports and special economic zones”, has opened the discussion to the external speakers partecipating at the convention.

 According to Berlinguer “Zes are containers where inside there is everything that can facilitate businesses and make their permancence welcoming and attractive. They are places where the State stimulates and helps the production processes. Zes systemizes great infrastructures, competences, services with the simplification of the bureaucratic procedures, customs charges reduction and differentiated tax system that rewards those who produce and those who export the most”.

 Of particular interest was the intervention of Bernardo Mattarella, Managing Director of Medio Credito Centrale SpA (a company with a sole shareholder INVOLVINA SpA), which underlined the importance of the credit to access by companies, especially in Southern Italy. Mattarella has therefore announced the subscription, occurred shortly before the convention, of an agreement with the CIPNES-Gallura (the first of this type realized in Sardinia) finalized to facilitating the access to credit and entrepreneurial development for companies located and operating in the consortium industrial area, which are considered worthy in order to obtain public support facilities.

The intervention of Gabriela Savigni, President of the Olbia Tempio Accountants Order, has mainly concerned the need for the companies to make easier the tax management to which they are subjected, seeing in the Zes as an important instrument of attraction and simplification.

Very rich of contents has also been the participation of Massimo Deiana, full professor of Maritime Law at University of Cagliari and president of the Harbour System Authority of Sardinia, which illustrated the importance of the Harbour authority and ports in particular, in the development of a coordinated project for the establishment of special economic zones, announcing the maximum collaboration of the agency of harbour coordination by him presided, for the management and the development of the strategic plan that carries to the institution of the Zes.

Luca Danese, Head of Institutional Relations Eurispes, has concluded the activities by noting the proximity to CIPNES of the founded institute and chaired by Gian Maria Fara, and the maximum willingness to collaborate on the project presented.

Download the conference poster