The Italian Prime Minister announced the new government on February 22nd.

Prime Minister-designate Matteo Renzi will officially announce the list of members of his new government on February 22nd.

Then, on February 24th, he and his cabinet will undergo two votes of confidence in the Senate and the House of Representatives.

Mr. Matteo Renzi. (Source: AFP/VNA)

Mr. Renzi will become the youngest prime minister in Italian history, at the age of 39.

On February 19, Renzi stated that he felt very optimistic about the prospects of forming a new government after more than a day of consultations with various political parties.

On February 18th and 19th, Renzi, the leader of the ruling Democratic Party (Pd) and recently appointed by the Italian President to form the new government, held discussions with the main political parties.

He described these meetings as having "positive" results and having "resolved fundamental difficulties" in forming a new government.

According to Italian press commentary, the key issue in implementing Renzi's proposed reforms is the need to find a competent economy minister.

Mr. Renzi tried to persuade some of the leading economists in the ministry, but without success.

It remains unclear who will hold this position in Renzi's cabinet. Another issue is which parties will be part of the Pd coalition in government.

In an interview with the press on February 19, Renzi affirmed that the new center-right party (NCD), composed of MPs who split from the opposition Forza Italy party of former Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi, would support the government.

The NCD played a crucial role in preventing Letta's government from collapsing last year, when Berlusconi sought to pressure the ruling Pd party to support him in his imprisonment for tax fraud.

According to the prestigious newspaper La Stampa, Renzi's situation upon taking power will be no different from that of the recently resigned Prime Minister Enrico Letta, as he will also have a precarious majority, with only a small number of NCD MPs supporting him. Meanwhile, the Forza Italy party and the Five Star Movement (M5S) will be the opposing forces.

Earlier, Berlusconi, the leader of Forza Italia, had declared his support for Renzi's reforms. However, Berlusconi still maintained that he shared some political views with Renzi and wanted to hold general elections this year.

Berlusconi was the most recent person to become Prime Minister directly through a popular vote. He resigned in 2011 when Italy was sinking deeper into economic crisis. Berlusconi's government was successively replaced by the Monti and Letta governments, before the government of Renzi emerged.

According to VNA