June 27, 2012 ~ Italian Minister of Justice Paola Severino, has been in Washington since Sunday on an offcial visit to meet with officials from the U.S. Government and from the IMF and World Bank. On Tuesday she met with U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder. Their meeting touched on a number of issues, including among others transnational crime, cyber crimes, data privacy, human trafficking, and terrorism.

Today, she had talks at the World Bank. Janamitra Devan, Vice President of theFinancial and Private Sector Development ,said following the meeting: "We are very encouraged by the substantial reforms Italy is implementing, particularly those aimed at improving the quality of the judicial and legal environment. These reforms will improve the investment climate for the private sector and contribute to boost the competitiveness of the Italian economy. This is important to promote higher economic growth".

Minister Severino, who was appointed in November 2011 by Prime Minister Mario Monti, is the first woman to head the Italian Ministry of Justice. Early this year, she disclosed, that she earned more than seven million euros last year, topping the list of the richest Italian cabinet officials. Minister Severino is a well-respected criminal lawyer and a law professor.

|CiaoAmerica.net|