22/06/2026
Leaders from Naples visiting Dhaka to seek institutional support from Professor Yunus
Dhaka, June 22, 2026:
Two distinguished visitors from Naples, Italy Mrs. Rachele Furfaro, President of the FOQUS Foundation, and Mr. Renato Qu***ia, General Manager of the Foundation, visited the Yunus Centre to meet Professor Muhammad Yunus on Sunday.
They came to Dhaka to meet Professor Yunus to persuade him to launch a joint initiative in three cities of southern Italy, Naples, Palermo, and Potenza, to address the problems of poverty, poor education, homelessness and the problems immigrants. They presented their long running efforts to address these problems with limited results.
The delegation discussed FOQUS Foundation's work in using education, social enterprise, and community-based innovation to regenerate fragile urban neighborhoods in Southern Italy.
FOQUS Foundation is an Italian foundation based in Naples that works on urban regeneration through education, welfare, entrepreneurship, culture, and social innovation. It began its work in the Quartieri Spagnoli area of Naples, transforming a fragile neighbourhood into a platform for employment, education, and community enterprise. The Foundation supports social enterprises in areas such as early childhood education, cultural tourism, catering, craft production, disability inclusion, and community services. FOQUS is now working to replicate and adapt its model in other Southern Italian contexts, including Palermo and Potenza, with the aim of creating self-sustaining local enterprises that generate employment, strengthen communities, and respond to social exclusion through practical, community-rooted solutions.
Given their slow progress they felt that they needed more experienced intervention to make significant dent in the problem. They came to Dhaka to propose a joint efforts with Professor Yunus for addressing the problems of these three cities in particular, and the region as a whole in general.
The discussion focused on the potential application of Professor Yunus's Social Business model in Naples, Palermo, and Potenza. The delegation discussed a framework for collaboration between the Yunus Centre and FOQUS Foundation by creating a Mediterranean Social Innovation Centre which will be dedicated to Professor Yunus’s three zero vision: zero net carbon emission, zero wealth concentration for ending poverty, and zero unemployment by unleashing entrepreneurship in all.
The FOQUS delegation invited Professor Yunus to visit the southern region of Italy as soon as possible to meet to the political and social leaders, academics to assess the situation for taking actions.
Professor Yunus assured them all the assistance they were requesting and assured them that he’ll give all the support from his side. He will plan a visit to the region to meet local leaders from all sections of the society.
