The economy of the sea in Italy, with 227.975 companies and 1.040.172 employees, it generates a direct added value of 64,6 billion euros. If we also consider the value activated in the rest of the economy, the total rises to 178,3 billion euros, equal to 10,2 % of the national GDP.
Il sector is growing significantly in various respects. Direct added value increased by 15,1%, double the Italian average growth of 6,9%. Overall added value also grew by almost one percentage point compared to the previous year, reaching 178,3 billion euros. The economic multiplier it rose to 1,8 compared to 1,7 last year, indicating that for every euro spent in sectors linked to the maritime economy, 1,8 are activated in the rest of the economy. L'occupation in the sector it increased by 6,6%, almost four times the growth recorded in the country (1,7%), while the number of companies remained stable.
These are the data that emerge from XII National Report on the Economy of the Sea, edited by National Observatory on the Economy of the Sea (Observe), Tagliacarne Study Center Unioncamere, Information, Frosinone Latina Chamber of Commerce e Blue forum Italia network. The report was presented in Rome at the Sala Longhi of Unioncamere in the presence of ministers Adolfo Urso and Nello Musumeci. The presentation event, moderated by Nunzia De Girolamo, was attended by the President of Unioncamere Andrea Prete, the President of Assonautica Italiana, Si.Camera and the Frosinone Latina Chamber of Commerce Giovanni Acampora, the General Director of the Centro Studi Tagliacarne Gaetano Fausto Esposito, and the coordinator of the National Observatory on the Economy of the Sea Observare Antonello Testa.
Blue economy: the territorial distribution of added value
The twelfth edition of the report, a point of reference for the definition of value of the Italian Blue Economy, examined various sectors of the "blue" productive force, including the fishing supply chain, shipbuilding, accommodation and catering services, sports and recreational activities, the marine extraction industry, the movement of goods and passengers, and research, regulation and environmental protection.
A regional level, the first five regions in terms of incidence of added value of the sea economy are: Liguria (11,9%), Friuli-Venezia Giulia (7,2%), Sardinia (7,1%), Lazio (6,0% ) and Sicily (5,7%). TO provincial level, the top five provinces are: Trieste (18,9%), Livorno (17,6%), La Spezia (16,8%), Gorizia (13,7%) and Rimini (13,0%).
The report also highlights the entrepreneurial diversification in the maritime sector: youth businesses represent 9,0% of the total, while those managed by women constitute 22,4%. Foreign companies, however, account for 7,4% of the sector.
Blue Economy: Southern Italy stands out but it's not enough
Il Southern Italy is confirmed as thearea with the greatest production of added value in the maritime sector, with almost 21 billion euros, representing approximately a third of the national total. Employment is also highly concentrated in the South, with over 37% of workers in the sector. Furthermore, the South is home to over 111 thousand companies, which make up more than 48% of the country's blue entrepreneurial base.
Despite these positive data, the economic multiplier of the South is relatively lower (1,6) compared to other Italian regions: North-East (2), North-West (1,9) and Center (1,7). This means that every euro spent in the South generates a smaller impact than in other areas.
" Blue Economy is characterized as one of driving sectors of our economy with a strong entrepreneurial connotation. A demonstration of this is the increase in the business base which has increased in the last two years by 1,5% against a contraction of almost two points in the overall one, with a greater presence of youth and female entrepreneurship. At the same time, the maritime economy represents one of the sectors in which the growth ofattention to digital and green. This is why the Chamber of Commerce system, which has already given strong emphasis to the blue economy in the past, will dedicate a growing commitment to companies in this sector in the coming years through targeted policies increasingly included in the framework of European priorities" he declared Andrew Priest, just reconfirmed president of Unioncamere.
“Our national report” – he declared John Acampora, President Italian Assonautica, Si.Camera and Chamber of Commerce Frosinone Latina – “has become the reference document of the Italian sea system, because it offers a timely analysis of the value and weight of the blue economy of our country, which we make available to everyone: sector operators, institutions, associations, businesses and the entire sea cluster. This is an essential element to give the right importance to the Italian Blue Economy and affirm its leadership in the Euro-Mediterranean context, in line with the work we are carrying out with the Sea Plan".
“In a country that is in first place in Europe among the large economies in terms of coast/surface ratio, the blue economy is characterized by being "against the current" not only because it obtains results in terms of development and employment superior to those of the overall, but also because the growth in added value and employment in the South was more than two points higher than the Italian average, thanks in particular to the excellent performances of tourism" he commented Gaetano Fausto Esposito, general manager of Tagliacarne Study Center, according to which "it remains to be highlighted that both the productivity of the blue supply chain and the ability to multiply resources is lower in the South, and that if both values were aligned with that of northern Italy there would be an increase in local added value of around a further 15 billion, equal to more than a quarter of the current overall blue production in the South".
