Club de Madrid is honoured to welcome Paolo Gentiloni, former Prime Minister of Italy (2016–2018), as its newest Member.
He served from 2016 to 2018, following a long political career that included several senior roles in government. From 2019 to 2024, he was European Commissioner for Economy, overseeing EU economic policy and the coordination of post-pandemic recovery strategies.
Prior to these roles, Mr Gentiloni served as Italy’s Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation (2014–2016) and as Minister of Communications (2006–2008). From 2001 to 2019, he was a Member of the Italian Parliament, where he chaired the Broadcasting Services Watchdog Committee and later served on the Foreign Affairs Committee. Earlier in his career, he was a professional journalist and a City Councillor in Rome (1993–2000). He was one of the 45 founding members of the Democratic Party (Partito Democratico – PD) and led the party as President from 2018 to 2019.
Today, Mr Gentiloni serves as Co-Chair of the United Nations Group of Experts to Promote Policy Solutions for Resolving the Debt Crisis, appointed by the UN Secretary-General in 2024. He is also a nonresident Distinguished Fellow at the Brookings Institution and actively contributes to global discussions on economic governance, multilateral cooperation, and democratic resilience. He holds a degree in Political Science from La Sapienza University in Rome. His most recent book is La sfida impopulista (The (Un)populist Challenge, Rizzoli), in which he reflects on populism and democracy in Europe.
