For years the Tuscany Region tries to be present outside Italian borders, where Italians are that immigrated between the first and second world war, and, with a budget of over 516.000 euro a year, the institution has established, since 1996, a true social development programme, to the end of maintaining strong relations with their fellow countrymen abroad.
There are 58 Tuscan associations/communities abroad – for a total of about 10.000 members – recognised and under agreement with the Region. Even if in reality, at the end of year 2000, subscribers to the AIRE (Italian register for residents abroad) were 35.000 only of Tuscan origin, belonging to 100 municipalities of the 287 existing ones.
Associations currently recognised are: 18 European, 22 of Central and South America, 12 between United States and Canada, 4 in Australia and 2 in South Africa, all sustained through contributions finalised to the maintenance of structures and to circulate Tuscan tradition. The region gives the possibility to young people, children of Italians who have emigrated abroad, to get to know Tuscany, setting up Italian classes, giving study-professional training grants, financing trips.
The travel financing programme is extended also to elderly people, those Italians who after a life spent abroad, have never had the chance of returning to their home country, to meet up with their family of origin and see their land again.
The presence of the Region extends also to the production - trade context.
In Argentina, for example, there are partnerships between local and Tuscan businesses, fundamentally in the sectors of the professional formation, of scientific and technological development. There are also interchanges signed in the cooperation agreement between the Associazione Industriali di Firenze and the Union industrial de la Provincia de Buenos Aires. This is an agreement that enables the Tuscany region to enter and operate inside a market in which the Tuscany businesses will be able to cooperate with as many Argentinean and expand trade relations to the whole of South America.
A tendency that goes beyond Tuscany and which is expanding also onto other communities. To this end we should point out the interest of all Italian regions and not only that towards the intensification of trade relations, not just with Argentina but also with the new South American marketing which they can operate as common European market within Mercosur.
Tuscany Region – Council of Tuscans abroad (In Italian)
Industrial Association of Florence (In Italian)
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