The 16th edition of COTEC that annually brings together foundations for innovation from Portugal, Italy and Spain, is dedicated to the theme "innovation in sustainable finance", and, as usual, the heads of state of Portugal, Italy, Sergio Mattarella, and for Spain, King Felipe VI, will speak at the closing session of the meeting, at the end of Tuesday morning, at the Teatro Massimo in Palermo, the capital of the island of Sicily.

According to a note from the organisation, the Palermo meeting of COTEC Europe will be an opportunity to reflect on how to "make the financial system a fundamental agent in the promotion of sustainable development, with the mission of directing public and private financial resources to sectors, projects and initiatives functional to the achievement of the 17 Sustainable Development Goals of the United Nations."

The closing session will also be attended by the European Commissioner for the Economy, Paolo Gentiloni.

Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa will arrive in Palermo on Monday afternoon, and take a walking tour with Mattarella and Felipe VI through the most emblematic places of the city, followed by a dinner with the three heads of state.

On Tuesday, the heads of state begin the day with a guided tour of the cathedral of Monreale, be part of the closing session of the XVI meeting of COTEC Europe, and end the visit to Palermo with a lunch.

The COTEC Europe meetings have been organised since 2005 and are held annually in Spain, Italy and Portugal, on a rotating basis, and are attended by business leaders, policymakers and academics from all sectors of economic activity, as well as the heads of state of the three countries of Southern Europe.

Last year's COTEC Europe edition took place in Braga.