“DEVELOPMENT, JOBS AND INNOVATION DRIVING GROWTH ACROSS ITALY” TAKE CENTRE STAGE AT THE INAUGURAL CONFERENCE AMONG GOVERNMENT AND INSTITUTIONAL REPRESENTATIVES
THE FORUM25 PROGRAMME, SPONSORED BY THE EUROPEAN COMMISSION, CONTINUES IN THE AFTERNOON WITH EVENTS AND INSTITUTIONAL CONFERENCES.
The 65th Genoa International Boat Show begins tomorrow, Thursday 18th September, and will be held in the historic city until 23rd September. The Boat Show will bring the Italian boating industry and its entire supply chain back to the centre of the world stage and of the institutional debate, confirming its position among the three most important events in the world.
The opening day will kick off at 11.00 am with the flag-hoisting ceremony and salute from the frigate Schergat (F 598) of the Italian Navy, which will be followed by the conference organised by the Italian Marine Industry Association entitled “Development, Jobs and Innovation Driving Growth Across Italy”.
For the first time in 65 editions the Genoa International Boat Show will welcome a minister representing the United States, with the Secretary of Transport of the State of Florida, Jared Perdue, joining the institutional greetings of Silvia Salis, the Mayor of Genoa, Matteo Paroli President of the Western Ligurian Sea Port System Authority, Admiral Nicola Carlone, Commander General of the Italian Harbour Offices, Admiral Giuseppe Berutti Bergotto, Deputy Chief of Staff of the Italian Navy, and Marco Bucci, President of the Liguria Region.
The inaugural talk, moderated by Sky Tg24 journalist Vittorio Eboli, will be attended by Italian Minister for Business and Made in Italy Production Adolfo Urso, representing Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, Minister for Tourism Daniela Garnero Santanchè, Deputy Minister for Infrastructure and Transport Edoardo Rixi, Italian Trade Agency President Matteo Zoppas, General Confederation of Italian Industry President Emanuele Orsini, and Italian Marine Industry Association President Piero Formenti.
Forum25: the Genoa International Boat Show’s brimming programme of conferences and workshops
In the afternoon, the Genoa International Boat Show will continue with the schedule of meetings and conferences that make up the FORUM25 programme, sponsored by the European Commission, which over the six days of the Boat Show will offer more than 90 events devoted to sustainability, innovation, finance, and the development of the boating industry.
The first of the events, at 2.15 pm, is The Sea That Matters: A Dialogue on the Italian Boating Sector, apresentation of the book “Diporto Nautico in Italia – Anno 2024” (Boating in Italy – 2024) by the Directorate-General for Digitalisation of the Italian Ministry for Infrastructure and Transport, at the Ponente Hall in the Palasport Pavilion. The Levante Hall will instead host, at 2.30 pm, Interior Yacht Design: The Materials of Today and Tomorrow, a conference organised by the University of Genoa, with the cooperation of Alpi wood and Rubelli.
At 3.00 pm, in the Forum Hall, the traditional regulatory and fiscal conference Boating, Tax and Customs will be held, organised by the Italian Marine Industry Association. This is an opportunity to discuss the regulatory, taxation, and customs-related framework that plays a crucial role in the international competitiveness of Italian companies.
This will be followed, at 4.30 pm, by the presentation of The Profile of a Recreational Boat Owner – the first analysis of Italian owners and their boats – organised by the Directorate-General, Italian Ministry of Infrastructure and Transport.
Day 1 of the FORUM25 programme at the Genoa International Boat Show will then come to a close with the event Pioneering From Within The System: The Future Of Boating, From Liguria To Italy, a conference held at the Eberhard & Co. Theatre by Quotidiano Nazionale in partnership with the Italian Marine Industry Association. The initiative aims to bring together the main institutional and business players in the Italian and Ligurian nautical sector for a high-profile and visionary debate. The event will delve into issues related to the boating and maritime economy, a strategic sector that generates wealth, employment, and innovation throughout Italy and beyond.
ALL THE EVENTS TOMORROW, THURSDAY 18th SEPTEMBER
PAVILION EVENTS
11:00 am: INAUGURAL CONFERENCE “DEVELOPMENT, JOBS AND INNOVATION DRIVING GROWTH ACROSS ITALY”
Organised by the Italian Marine Industry Association
Blue Pavilion Terrace
2:15 pm THE SEA THAT MATTERS: A DIALOGUE ON THE ITALIAN BOATING SECTOR
Book presentation: “Diporto Nautico in Italia – Anno 2024” (“Italian Boating Industry – 2024”)
Organised by the Directorate-General for Digitalisation of the Italian Ministry for Infrastructure and Transport
2:30 pm: “THE SCUBA DIVING HUB OF LIGURIA”
Organised by the Liguria Regional Council – Blue Pavilion Terrace
2:30 pm: “INTERIOR YACHT DESIGN: THE MATERIALS OF TODAY AND TOMORROW”
Organised by the University of Genoa, with the collaboration of Alpi Wood and Rubelli
Levante Hall, Palasport Pavilion
3:00 pm: “BOATING, TAX AND CUSTOMS”
Organised by the Italian Marine Industry Association.
Forum Hall
4:30 pm: THE PROFILE OF A RECREATIONAL BOAT OWNER
The first analysis of Italian owners and their boats
Organised by the Directorate-General, Italian Ministry of Infrastructure and Transport
EBERHARD & CO. THEATRE
3:00 pm: “THE INTERNATIONAL YACHTING MEDIA OPENS ITS FIRST MARINE TEST CENTER AT MARINA PORTO ANTICO”
Organised by the International Yachting Media
4:00 pm: “PIONEERING FROM WITHIN THE SYSTEM: THE FUTURE OF BOATING, FROM LIGURIA TO ITALY”
Conference organised by Quotidiano Nazionale in partnership with the Italian Marine Industry Association
CONFERENCES AND EVENTS
5:30 pm: SUPERMARINE EVENT – Saxdor Yachts Stand BA143A
5:30 pm: STEM MARINE – WELCOME APERITIVO – Stand SC56
6:30 pm: SUZUKI MARINE – BOAT SHOW INAUGURAL COCKTAILS – Stand D4-E5
Genoa, 17th September 2025
