Aerospace sector in Campania is among the most technologically advanced

In a highly unstable geopolitical scenario characterised by structural energy and production dependencies to be mitigated and ambitious European sustainable development objectives to be achieved, the Mezzogiorno plays a role of crucial importance in certain technological and production areas. This is supported by Svimez’s 2023 study.
Among the ‘spearheads’ of southern Italy Areospace sector in Campania is among the most technologically advanced.
Southern agrifood, a sector with a dual agricultural and industrial matrix, has shown itself to be particularly active in terms of access to foreign markets: +81% the export of southern agrifood between 2014 and 2022, against an average of +61% for the area’s overall exports. Expanding and integrating strategic production chains with a high innovation content in southern Italy means effectively countering the skills drain by retaining and attracting highly qualified workers to carry out innovation, production modernisation and internationalisation processes. In this way, ‘quality’ and higher-paid jobs are created.

This operation requires a systemic, organic and prospective policy framework aimed at supporting and qualifying the productive offer of the Mezzogiorno also through complementary and selective industrial policy instruments: Development Contracts (CdS), Special Economic Zones (ZES), Internationalisation Funds, Innovation Agreements. The CdS, which finance large industrial investments in the South, appear to be a particularly attractive tool for companies: according to Invitalia’s updated data, in the 2012-22 period, applications for EUR 27 billion were submitted and projects for EUR 4.5 billion were financed, activating a total of EUR 12.3 billion in investments. A total of EUR 51.6 billion of potentially activatable investments would be missing if all the applications at the preliminary stage were admitted.
The ZES instrument, conceived as an ‘area of advantage’ in which the reduction of transaction costs generates vertical (supply chain) and horizontal (intra-sector) agglomerative effects, is also an effective industrial policy tool to support industrialisation processes and structural change.