June 28, 2025 – Rocca di Ravaldino, Forlì
On the occasion of Somalia’s Independence Week, the association organized the Somali Culture Day for integration. This event was of great symbolic and human value, with around 300 participants from all over Italy. Institutional Speakers
- Mayor Gian Luca Zattini and Deputy Mayor Vincenzo Bongiorno
- The Ambassador of Somalia in Italy, Ibrahim Omar Shegow, with First Counselor Khalid Maou and Second Counselor Ahmed Hassan
- Doctors from the Bologna Health Authority: Diana Grand’olio (psychologist) and Maria Nolet (psychiatrist), who shared moving testimonies about their work with Somali immigrants
Mayor Gian Luca Zattini
The Somali community is an important presence in our city. What truly matters is getting to know each other, appreciating each other, respecting each other. The Italian and Somali communities share a deeply moving connection: Annalena Tonelli. A giant of solidarity, an extraordinary figure of humanity, who chose to live the Somali hope, even wishing for her ashes to rest in that land. We want to maintain this climate of respect, because it is what helps us grow together.
Ambassador Ibrahim Omar Shegow
Dear Mayor, we are deeply honored by your presence. As the new Ambassador of Somalia in Italy, resident in Rome since April 7, I am very happy to participate in this celebration, which coincides with Somalia’s Independence Week. We have seen how the Somali community in Emilia-Romagna, in Forlì and nearby areas, has been welcomed warmly and respectfully. This is a welcome we will never forget. You, Mr. Mayor, are the head of this city, and your presence here tonight deeply honors us. The Somali community is here to integrate. As we heard from the professional’s present—the psychiatrist and the psychologist—many Somalis carry deep traumas: caused by civil war, armed conflict, and extremist violence. That is why they sought refuge in the world, and especially in Italy, where often their parents already spoke the language and had historical ties. The Somali community is here to learn the language, to train, to contribute. To young Somalis I say: integrate, integrate, integrate. Only in this way can we build a dignified future, together.