The first summit between the mayors of Italy's capital cities will take place in Genoa, with Salis and the National Association of Italian Municipalities (ANCI) inviting the mayors to the Ducale.

All the mayors of Italy's metropolitan cities and capitals, all wearing the tricolor sash, all together in Genoa to discuss the most sensitive issues facing the region's most important administrations: from budgets to security. This, in short, is the agenda for next September 17th, when the Salone del Minor Consiglio in Palazzo Ducale will host, in addition to the regional ANCI assembly, the conference of metropolitan cities, and a first meeting between the political leaders of the country's major cities. This is an unprecedented summit, a first meeting of all the mayors of Italy's major cities, taking shape almost two years after the major assembly of Italian municipalities, held in Genoa in October 2023, amid the Waterfront construction site. And it already appears to be worth an investment both for the city and for the person who conceived it: the new mayor Silvia Salis herself.

At the last major assembly of mayors held in Genoa, attended by President Sergio Mattarella, all the country's mayors arrived in the city. This September, with the ANCI Liguria assembly serving as the "hosting event," the format will be different. At least formally, the invitations from ANCI Liguria and ANCI National will bring Italy's leading administrators to Genoa. However, gathering around the Ducale table, following the work of the regional assembly and the conference of metropolitan cities, will also be the mayors of major cities. From Naples to Bologna, where the first confirmations of participation have arrived, to Turin, Milan, and Rome. Gaetano Manfredi and Matteo Lepore , Stefano Lo Russo and Beppe Sala , and Roberto Gualtieri will all be present. This is a targeted approach, conceived for the first time for the summit of top administrators, because "Mayors of major cities have a fundamental role in the stability of the country," is the significant message from Mayor Salis.

"Every day we face enormous challenges that affect our daily lives, often without adequate tools and with responsibilities that fall solely on local administrators," explains the mayor, the first to consider and heed the extended invitation from the mayors' assembly. "Administering a large Italian city today means taking on complex issues: from managing budgets, increasingly strained and with ever more requests and less aid from the state, to the constant pressure on public services. And we often do so within a regulatory framework that fails to take into account urban specificities. The meeting with my fellow mayors will be an important opportunity to discuss the major issues affecting all metropolitan cities, from economic and social sustainability to the management of public order and new urban vulnerabilities. Urban security and immigration, for example. Or the management of the reception and integration of unaccompanied foreign minors."

In short, the event has all the potential to become a new opportunity to reaffirm the political importance of the role of administrators, a recurring theme on the (turbulent) national political and institutional scene. There's no danger of (yet another) revival of the "mayors' party" movement, at least for now. Rather, it's an attempt to position the category on the ground, demanding attention and "concrete tools, resources, and shared planning." And while Salis's chance to host the event could earn him (further) recognition on the national stage, for the city, "it will be another important showcase," assures Pierluigi Vinai , the regional head of the National Association of Italian Municipalities (ANCI). The day after the assembly, on the 18th, the mayors of the 21 provincial capitals will open the Boat Show. "A symbol of our ability to innovate and attract," he launches the challenge within a challenge, "which must become an opportunity to create value throughout the year, not just during the event."