News Analysis: Experts see mixed results after two years of Italian PM Renzi in power

Italian Prime Minister Matteo Renzi this week celebrated his second year in office amid a mix of achievements at the helm of the center-left government and some criticism for not yet being able to bring about far-reaching change in the country.

Experts generally agree that Renzi's first two years as prime minister have been marked by impressive results in parliament. His mandate ends in 2018.

Italy's leading economic newspaper Il Sole 24 Ore calculated that of 195 laws passed in 35 months, including the government of former prime minister Enrico Letta, 159 have been approved under Renzi's rule so far.

The 41-year-old former mayor of Florence has passed several reforms concerning labor, school and bureaucracy, electoral law, an anti-corruption package, and so on.

"Renzi has undoubtedly proven to be a great leader. In these two years, he has led a difficult coalition and has brought a breath of fresh air into Italian politics," Aldo Cazzullo, a political columnist for Italy's leading newspaper Corriere della Sera, told Xinhua.

Cazzullo said the jobs act and the good school act, which simplified the labor market and modernized the education system, were positive reforms. "The Renzi government was the first one to put money into the education sector rather than subtracting money like all previous governments had done," he noted.

In Italy's foreign policy, Renzi has taken some positive steps, Cazzullo added. Renzi went for an official visit to China in June 2014, just months after he took office, and has just come back from Argentina, where no Italian prime ministers had gone in 18 years.

On Monday, Renzi announced a visit to Tehran in April and said he would attend a nuclear summit organized in Washington at the end of March.

Cazzullo added, however, Renzi's official aides were people close to him instead of professionals selected on merit.

Italy may also lack investor faith, Cazzullo said. "Italy needs private investments in big projects, infrastructure and logistics, to foster growth. Renzi should be thinking more long-term," he said.

A recent survey of research institute Demopolis has shown that more than a third of surveyed Italians, or over 35 percent, were satisfied with the government in the past two years.

Renzi's popularity, though not as strong as in 2014, was slightly higher than a few weeks ago, at about 38 percent.

Italians complained, however, that their prime minister had not taken decisive action in the fight against corruption, combating tax evasion and reducing waste in public finances.

"The Renzi government has certainly carried out several reforms, although they should be analyzed carefully," Gianfranco Pasquino, a former left-wing senator and political science professor emeritus at Bologna University, said.

In his view, the jobs act and good school act contain positive elements. However, the electoral law reform, "was not innovative enough and risks causing government fragmentation instead of producing a clear majority."

Pasquino said Renzi and his aides lack the necessary "institutional culture" to carry out the appropriate changes. "In fact, political culture has disappeared in Italy with old parties which had their roots in the 19th century," he pointed out.

In foreign policy, Renzi has achieved some good results such as the appointment of former foreign minister Federica Mogherini as the European Union high representative for foreign affairs and security policy.

But Renzi "should have sought allies in Europe to improve the EU regulations instead of challenging all the other European member states, which is ineffective," Pasquino told Xinhua. "Italy is part of Europe and needs its support," he stressed.

Pasquino highlighted that Italy has a strong entrepreneurial system, and strengths in various sectors from mechanics to agro-food and niche products. "But our government should definitely do more to exploit the many assets of Italy and bring a real evolution of the country," he said. Enditem