Photo: Roberto Gualtieri © Roma Capitale
Caught between economic strain and a crisis of confidence, Roberto Gualtieri won over a politically weakened city in 2021. Backed by his rallying cry, “Rome is transforming,” the man now seen as the capital’s providential leader has taken the Eternal City’s destiny back in hand. Italy’s former Minister of Economy and Finance is everywhere at once: overseeing Herculean worksites across the city and using social media to keep residents updated on key issues while keeping the conversation open. Rome was not built in a day, but the Gualtieri era looks set to leave a lasting mark on the city’s history, thanks to the modernising shift driven by this all-round elected official. Meet a charismatic leader determined to restore Rome, the legendary city, to its rightful stature.
By Sabah Kaddouri
When you were elected in 2021, you inherited a city weakened both politically and economically. How did you reopen dialogue with Romans and restore the image and appeal of the Eternal City?
Roberto Gualtieri : We started from the premise that there was no longer any room for the “status quo” and that deep transformation was unavoidable. In other words, we had to start again on a new footing: a new pact of trust with Romans, who deserve services and a quality of life worthy of the city’s glorious history. I am driven by optimism and refuse to give in to fatalism or pessimism. We have launched transformation at every level and, to date — as the city’s dedicated website shows — more than 1,200 projects have been delivered or are under way, including 710 that have already been completed; if one adds those led by the various districts, the figure is even higher. Our goal is to modernise the city, improve residents’ quality of life and pursue a long-term vision for Rome’s transformation.
Admittedly, at the start of my term, the simultaneous launch of so many worksites may have been perceived as a source of disruption for Romans, who felt the effects every day. Very quickly, however, that perception began to change, and residents were able to see the first benefits of this transformation.
“Roma si trasforma” (Rome is transforming) means precisely that: more green spaces and pedestrian zones, new metro stations, more social infrastructure serving Romans, better professional prospects and a much more accessible cultural offering. To cite just one example among many, we organised a citywide silent collective reading of a Dostoevsky masterpiece, and participation was exceptional. Romans are looking for opportunities to come together and get involved; they want to feel fully part of the city’s life. Because our capital should not be reduced to a sumptuous backdrop for tourists: first and foremost, it is the city of those who live there every day.
Cleaning up public finances, reassuring the business community, championing social justice and solidarity, accelerating the ecological transition… The task is Herculean. How do you keep all those plates spinning?
R.G : By fostering cooperation between public institutions, private-sector players and citizens. We want to awaken and strengthen a sense of belonging to a community in which everyone can play a role, all of this, of course, in complete transparency.
Allow me, for this summer, to focus in particular on one sensitive issue: beach concessions and public access to the beaches. For years, former concession holders engaged in repeated abuses and monopolistic practices on the beaches. We put the concessions out to tender, setting aside government regulations that conflicted with European directives; we increased the number of free public beaches; and, in cooperation with the judiciary and law enforcement, we began demolishing the illegal structures that disfigured our coastline.
We were the first, in Rome as in Italy, to take on a very powerful lobby; but when it comes to enforcing the law and defending Romans’ rights, my hand does not tremble.
You are a mayor known for your strong presence on social media. That has also made you a target.
R.G : Transparency towards citizens lies at the heart of our vision of politics. Social media allows me to engage with Romans in real time, highlight projects under way and, at the same time, listen to the population. I want everyone to be able to access all information regarding public procurement, allocated resources and delivery timelines: everything is available and documented on an interactive map. This approach is also part of our broader vision of modernisation through support for Rome’s digital transition, a project that is a priority for us. We have invested more than €1 billion in digital technology to strengthen 5G coverage, roll out free Wi-Fi, improve video surveillance and monitoring of the environment and infrastructure, create a digital twin in every district to optimise service quality, and harness artificial intelligence from a fully public data platform.
One project we are particularly proud of is “Julia”, Rome’s virtual assistant; unique in the world, it is designed to make life easier for both residents and visitors. Let’s try it together: if, for example, I ask “Julia” to find the hospital best suited to provide immediate care while avoiding long journeys and endless waiting times, “Julia” is able to give me a personalised answer. Today, “Julia” can also guide citizens through administrative procedures, document management and access to services; it provides the necessary information and spells out the steps required to access various services or set up a business, such as opening an ice-cream shop.
As far as I know, the only other city in the world with a comparable AI system is Dubai; however, “Julia” is more advanced when it comes to citizen services, while Dubai has the edge in the business sector.
After the demonstration you have just given, I can indeed see how effective “Julia” is! But what about data protection?
R.G : “Julia” is a public service managed and supervised by the local authorities. That guarantees data protection and confidentiality. Moreover, no commercial use is planned for the data collected; it remains under the full and exclusive control of the public authority. In addition, “Julia” does not draw information from the Web, but uses only certified and therefore reliable data.
Rome also has the particularity of coexisting with another state, the Vatican. How does the Holy See fit into your policy of transforming the city?
R.G : The role of mayor of Rome entails close cooperation with the Vatican, with full respect for each institution’s remit and without interfering in political or religious affairs.
Rome is the global capital of Christianity and, at the same time, a place devoted to peaceful coexistence and dialogue between cultures and religions. Although most citizens are Catholic, Rome is home to the largest synagogue and the largest mosque in Europe. We are a proudly multicultural city, built on values of fraternity, universality and peace; in that sense, the presence of the Holy See is an exceptional asset, spiritually as well as civically and culturally.
The 2025 Catholic Jubilee forcefully reaffirmed the values of hope, fraternity and peace, leaving a deep and lasting mark on the city while helping to transform it. Pope Francis and, subsequently, Pope Leo XIV urged us to welcome pilgrims in the best possible way and to promote the Jubilee’s values across the entire city. It is in this spirit that we launched numerous urban renewal projects, both in the city centre and on the outskirts.
We welcomed more than 33 million pilgrims who mingled with the daily life of Romans, creating an extraordinary encounter between the city and people from all over the world.
Pope Leo XIV was recently attacked by President Donald Trump, who told him to stay away from political issues. Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni voiced her solidarity with the Holy Father. What do you make of these tensions?
R.G : Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni was absolutely right to express her solidarity with the Pope. Today, many forces are fuelling a bellicose and fundamentalist discourse. Rome, like the Vatican, instead stands for fraternity, interreligious dialogue and peace. I believe that must remain a firm response to those who would turn back history, reverting to the logic of force, wars and invasions to govern relations between peoples.
Let’s stay with the soft power that also defines Rome. The Eternal City is a sought-after destination for hosting major global events. After the success of the Jubilee, which projects are now on the table?
R.G : We are taking a long-term view, spanning at least a decade. The Jubilee was a key milestone, but certainly not the end goal. In the years ahead, major projects aimed at structurally transforming the city will be completed: from the expansion of rail public transport to the creation of green spaces, from the large-scale upgrading of public areas to the full rollout of services based on the “15-minute city” model.
In that context, another event of enormous significance is already on the horizon: 2033, which will mark the bimillennial anniversary of the Resurrection of Christ. Rome must prepare for it. It will be another major international event and, at the same time, an additional opportunity to accelerate the city’s transformation, build new infrastructure and leave Romans a lasting legacy.
That is also the logic behind the Olympic dossier. We want to seriously examine the possibility of Rome bidding to host the 2036 or 2040 Olympic Games. Rome has all the assets needed to stage the world’s greatest sporting gathering, and I believe the Olympics could represent an exceptional opportunity to complete this vast cycle of transformation.
Switzerland is a land of tennis — is it likely that Rome could become the destination for a fifth Grand Slam, as has been whispered?
R.G : I will not venture into the remit of the president of the Italian Tennis Federation. What I can say, however, is that the Rome Masters, held in the exceptional setting of the Foro Italico, continues to grow year after year; in addition, work is due to begin soon on covering the central court, a project that will allow the tournament to reach a new level of quality.
Jannik Sinner has paved the way for a new era of major successes for Italian tennis, alongside other outstanding players such as Lorenzo Musetti and Flavio Cobolli. This reflects the great vitality currently enjoyed by Italian tennis. I therefore leave it to the Federation to work on the project of a fifth Grand Slam tournament, in whatever way it deems most appropriate. As mayor, I can say that Rome has all the assets it needs to continue developing one of its most important international sporting events.
What legacy do you want to leave in a city as mythical as Rome?
R.G : My goal is to make Rome a more sustainable and more liveable city, increasingly attentive to the needs of its residents and to the major shifts taking place in the world, starting with the challenge of climate change. We have launched a rigorous programme to manage our tree stock, because trees must not only be planted, but also maintained, monitored and secured. At the same time, we are investing in the restoration and upkeep of Rome’s major historic parks as well as in the development of green spaces in every district. We are implementing one of the largest urban afforestation programmes in our history, with the aim of planting around one million new trees over five years and creating or renovating around 100 parks.
We want an ever greener Rome, where parks, trees and public spaces are an integral part of the city’s environmental infrastructure and a key lever for fighting climate change while improving quality of life. There are also the major projects that will shape Rome’s transformation in the years ahead: work on Metro Line C, including the opening of Piazza Venezia station; the waste-to-energy plant at Santa Palomba and the recycling facilities designed to close the waste loop; the rehabilitation of the Tiber; and the definitive revitalisation of Ostia and the Roman coastline. We want to give Romans back two of the city’s extraordinary natural resources – the river and the sea – by making them ever more accessible, more urban-life friendly and more integrated into daily life.
We also intend to focus very firmly on housing, one of the major challenges facing the world’s great metropolitan areas today. We need to increase the supply of affordable housing, especially for young people and families, while ensuring that it is accompanied by services, public spaces and places for social interaction that improve quality of life in neighbourhoods.
Finally, we want to keep investing in the future and in innovation. Rome has a first-rate scientific and academic ecosystem and is home to internationally renowned institutions in education and quantum technology research. We want to strengthen this ecosystem through structural investment and make Rome an international centre of excellence in this sector.
Rome must look to the future. For too long, it stood still, content merely to contemplate its exceptional history. Yet a city with such a history cannot afford to live in the past; it must show ambition and continue transforming itself if it is to play a leading role in the future.
To conclude our conversation: which mayor or mayors would you like to pay tribute to for their work?
R.G : It’s hard to name just one… I have many friends and I wouldn’t want to offend anyone! (laughter). I’ll set aside Italian mayors, because there are so many of them and they are all brilliant.
In Europe, I can mention the mayor of Barcelona, with whom we have built a very strong partnership, especially on housing. On that issue, we have helped foster a genuine European alliance among cities, one that is influencing the European Union’s agenda to put access to housing at the heart of the debate. I also want to congratulate the new mayor of Paris, whom I hold in high regard. In addition, I see London, Lisbon, Vienna, Warsaw and Athens as very interesting urban laboratories.
Outside Europe, the mayor of New York is a huge source of inspiration, particularly for his commitment to housing affordability and social justice; I also maintain excellent relations with the mayors of Chicago and Boston. I believe the boldest and most innovative democratic and progressive mayors can play a major role in renewing left-wing values, combining an accessible approach with a global vision.
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