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AfroLatAmLAB

The Africa & Latin America research unit (AfroLatAmLAB) at the Centre for International Strategic Studies (CISS), LUISS Guido Carli, is established as a multidisciplinary platform committed to rethinking international relations between Italy & Europe and Africa & Latin America. Through partnerships with institutional bodies, private entities, civil society actors, university cooperation, and innovation hubs, AfroLatAmLAB engages in strategic dialogue, knowledge production, and capacity-building initiatives, with the ultimate aim of enhancing Italian expertise and its contribution to both international solidarity and development cooperation. The research unit aims to strategically contribute to European Union Delegated Cooperation initiatives designed to expand development partnerships toward regions that have not yet been prioritized but hold strategic importance in both Africa and Latin America, fostering broader and more inclusive collaboration in alignment with Italy’s evolving foreign policy priorities amid the shifting dynamics of contemporary international relations.

 

The Lab’s work is organised around two main interrelated axes of analysis, whose mutual reinforcement lies at the core of its approach. Mediation and peacebuilding efforts are most effective when embedded in broader strategies for economic justice and environmental sustainability. Conversely, economic partnerships gain legitimacy when grounded in inclusive governance, social cohesion, and human security. This integrated logic informs how the Lab conceptualises, designs, and implements its initiatives – bridging the gap between short-term crisis response and long-term structural transformation.

 

The first axis centres on peacebuilding, international mediation, and conflict resolution, addressing the urgent need for new diplomatic tools and conflict mitigation strategies, particularly in fragile contexts across Africa and Latin America. By contributing to initiatives such as the Italian Initiative on International Mediation (3IM) and supporting the development of the RIMI (Italian Network for International Mediation) roster of mediators, the AfroLatAmLAB fosters Italy’s leadership in Track II diplomacy, while cultivating local capacities for dialogue and civic engagement. As part of this work, the Lab will also launch a Comparative Electoral Observatory to monitor political trends and electoral dynamics across Africa and Latin America as a lens for understanding how leadership models and political narratives shape regional stability, citizen engagement, and prospects for peace.

 

The second axis focuses on strategic economic cooperation as a complementary and necessary pathway to sustaining peace, enabling inclusive development, and redistributing value. Particular emphasis is placed on the Global South, including Africa and Latin America’s geopolitical positioning between the US, China, and the EU; the role of Multilateral Development Banks (MDBs) within the emerging financial architecture of the post-Official Development Assistance (ODA) world. The Lab explores how alternative economic models, such as in the case of the BRICS+ or the Community of Portuguese Language Countries (CPLP), can challenge extractive dynamics by strengthening local production systems and reinforcing territorial sovereignty. It engages with themes such as value chain integration, public-private collaboration, and the financialization of development, while promoting South–South and Triangular Cooperation (SSTRc) as frameworks for co-creating equitable and resilient growth. The Lab considers particularly relevant that, within South–South cooperation frameworks, digital innovation and financial technologies (fintech) play a crucial role in advancing inclusive economic empowerment, by delivering tailored solutions to underserved communities, such as in the cases of mobile banking for smallholders and inclusive finance platforms. Particular attention is given to food security and food sovereignty, with a focus on empowering smallholder farmers, by enhancing agro-industrial sectors like coffee and cocoa, advancing ownership structures – such as community-based energy access to drive social mobility – and developing sustainable ecotourism models that align environmental stewardship with local livelihoods. The Lab positions itself as a strategic actor in redefining Italy’s global cultural, economic, and social presence by supporting the reorientation of Italian Economic Diplomacy toward high- and medium-potential alternative markets, particularly in Africa and Latin America. This approach aligns with the objectives of the Mattei Plan and the EU’s Global Gateway initiative and promotes a strategic triangulation among the three regions. Central to this effort is the recognition of the Italian global diaspora as a driver of cultural relations, the empowerment of communities abroad as connectors between diverse contexts, and the promotion of the Italian language and heritage as tools of soft power. Moving beyond a reductive focus on language alone, the AfroLatAmLAB advances a broader concept of Italophony as a multidimensional vehicle of international engagement. In this context, the forthcoming First Italophony Summit represents a key milestone to consolidate this vision, institutionalize new forms of cooperation, and position cultural diplomacy as a core pillar of Italy’s international strategy.

Head of Unit

  • Marco Massoni

    Marco Massoni

    Marco Massoni (PhD, Rome 1972) is an independent political analyst and international relations expert, specialist in Africa, Latin America, and Extra-Western philosophies. Since 2022, he has been teaching African Studies at LUISS University of Rome. As of 2025, he directs the Africa and Latin America Research Unit at LUISS’s Centre for International and Strategic Studies (CISS). Previously, he served as Diplomatic Senior Advisor for the Italian G8 Presidency and worked with the EU, OSCE, UN (FAO, UNHCR), NGOs, and think tanks. From 2011 to 2017, he was Director of African Research at IRAD at the Italian Centre for Defence Higher Studies (CASD), where he still lectures. He was Editorial Director of the quarterly Politica Africana. He has taught Development Studies at The American University of Rome (AUR) and International Law and Peace Processes at Roma Tre University. He is a consultant of the European Union External Action Service (EEAS) and the OSCE Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights (ODIHR), extensive experience in the field of democratisation processes, electoral observation & electoral assistance, diplomacy & negotiation, cyber-diplomacy, human rights & humanitarian law, mediation, peacebuilding & conflict resolution, post-war reconstruction and strategic studies.

Researcher

  • Valentino Trenga

    Valentino Trenga

    Valentino holds a bachelor’s and master’s degree in International Relations from LUISS University in Rome, graduating with top marks and honors. He completed his master’s degree through a double degree programme with MGIMO University in Moscow, majoring in Global Governance. He works at Revolut as a FinCrime & Sanctions Analyst and has gained professional experience in International Sanctions, Trade Law, EU Law, and Global Governance across governmental institutions, IOs, law firms, and diplomatic missions. He has a strong personal interest in political–diplomatic, and international finance dynamics, with a particular focus on developing countries of the Islamic world, Africa, and the Americas.

  • Yuchen Xia

    Yuchen Xia

    Yuchen Xia earned her Bachelor’s degree in International Politics from Liaoning University in China and then completed the double Master’s in Diplomacy jointly awarded by China Foreign Affairs University (CFAU) and LUISS Guido Carli. She just started a Master’s in International Economics at the Graduate Institute (IHEID) in Geneva. Her work focuses on the evolving international positioning of Latin America, with a particular interest in triangular cooperation, South–South development frameworks, and interregional dynamics between Latin America, Africa, and Europe. She is especially engaged in exploring the intersections of global development, finance, and institutional partnerships.