(Finance) – “SOS keep 500,000 quota”. This is the title of the third edition of the States General of the Natality which were held in Rome at the Auditorium della Conciliazione. A two-day event that also saw Pope Francis and Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni among the protagonists. The event was dedicated to the analysis of the demographic health of our country, focusing on the largest drop in births from 160 years to today. From Enel to Cassa Depositi e Prestiti, from Tim to Danone, Allianz and Invitalia, the event not only involved politics but also saw the presence of the world of economics in doing so and the support of the government
The theme of the birth rate is “central for everyone, especially for the future of Italy and Europe. The birth of children, in fact, is the main indicator for measuring the hope of a people. If few are born, it means that c “there is little hope. And this not only has repercussions from an economic and social point of view, but undermines confidence in the future – said the Dad speaking at the States General of the Natality -. I learned that last year Italy reached an all-time low in births: just 393,000 new born. It is a fact that reveals great concern – Pope Francis underlined – for tomorrow. Today, bringing children into the world is perceived as a family business. And this, unfortunately, conditions the mentality of the younger generations, who grow up in uncertainty, if not in disillusionment and fear. They live in a social climate in which starting a family is turning into a titanic effort, rather than a shared value that everyone recognizes and supports.”
“Since day one, the government has put children and parents at the top of the political agenda, it has made the birth rate and the family the absolute priority of our action, because we want Italy to have a future again, to hope and believe in a better future than this uncertain present – said la Prime Minister, Giorgia Meloni –. If women don’t have the opportunity to fulfill their desire for motherhood without giving up their professional one, it’s not that they won’t have equal opportunities, they won’t have freedom”. with the subsidiary approach, of those who believe that the task of the State is to create favorable conditions, with the normative environment and above all on the cultural level, for the family, for initiative, for development, for work. Someone will say that we want an ethical state: no, we want a state that accompanies and does not direct, we want to believe in people, to bet on Italians, on young people, on their hunger for a future. Meloni mentioned the provision of the fringe benefit which she – she said – “we want to keep at three thousand euros, giving priority to those with dependent children”.
After the programmatic lines of the premier Giorgia Meloni and of Pope francesco, the word to companies, with examples and virtuous models of work-life balance and equality between men and women. It is the case of Danonewhose president and managing director Fabrizio Gavelli, illustrated the model adopted in his company for 12 years now. “In 2022 we had an 8 percent higher birth rate,” Gavelli announced. An “exceptional” result when compared with the national data amply illustrated in the two days dedicated to parenting and the result of ad hoc company policies. “We have 54 percent of female managers – continued Gavelli –, we want them to return to work after maternity leave and for this reason we have introduced a maternity allowance of 60 percent, the provision of bonuses and the recognition of salary increases even during maternity leave and a whole series of other accompanying measures that have earned Danone the certification of gender equality with a very high score. We want to offer our model to the institutions, we ask the government first of all that these virtuous behaviors are recognized and there are many ways to do it, there are those who talk about taxation or points that can then be obtained for races. And the other is that the single universal check becomes more accessible and increased than it is today”
Even the Tim’s president, Salvatore Rossispoke of her company as a company where “finally the idea is making headway that a woman has children with confidence and tranquillity, being able to keep not only her job of course, but also career prospects, being able to do so without obstacles because a big company must understand that its employees are real human capital”.
Another example is that of Nicola Lanzetta of Enel, who told. “We have our own nursery school in Rome where – he said Lanzetta – there is the largest office and we generally reimburse up to 39 percent of school fees. We have also started specific courses for parents who have to manage children with disabilities”. “
We too have a decent welfare package – he echoed Bernardo Mattarella of Invitalia – and we also note that female entrepreneurship is the one most sensitive to the need to reconcile work and family, businesses run by women are the ones that work best, everything we do is aimed at not making our country lose generations”.