Italy adopts COVID-19 stimulus measures worth €32 billion

Europe: The Italian government approved stimulus projects worth €32 billion on Friday to combat the coronavirus pandemic's destructive effects on the economy.

"This decree is a vital and very coherent answer to poverty and to businesses, it is a partial response, but it is the maximum that we have been able to do," Prime Minister Mario Draghi told reporters in Rome.

Around €11 billion will be devoted to organizations and auto-entrepreneurs in pain that lost at least 30% of their revenues in 2020. A total of €8 billion were allotted to the struggle on poverty and centers to support work, said economy minister Daniele Franco.

Italy was the first country hit by the pandemic in Europe and required a strict lockdown in March and April 2020, which paralyzed much of the economy.

Roughly 450,000 people, mostly women and young people, lost their jobs last year and the GDP collapsed by 8.9%.

Rome will inherit the largest share of Europe's €750 billion stimulus plan and must submit a national plan to Brussels by the end of April but the new PM Mario Draghi plans to make money.

Freeze on layoffs and other support measures passed by the Council of Ministers. The government will also extended a freeze on layoffs until the end of June and for some companies until the end of October.

Aid of around €900 million will also be allocated to annual workers who cannot benefit from partial unemployment. Several areas hard hit by the pandemic will get further aid including the culture sector and mountains sector.

About €5 billion were allocated towards health, including the acquisition of vaccines against COVID-19 and tablets. The government gave €200 million for vaccine production in Italy.

These emergency actions are in expanding to the more than €100 billion already mobilized by Italy last year to restore market sectors shut down during lockdown.

Much of the country recently went back into lockdown this past week as contaminations rise.