On 14 October 2007 he became the first President of the Democratic Party upon foundation of the party.

On 12 September 2008 United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki Moon selected Prodi as president of African Union-UN peacekeeping panel.1 Contents 1 Personal 2 Academic career 3 Politics 3.1 Early political career 3.2 Olive Tree and first cabinet (19961998) 3.3 President of the European Commission (19992004) 3.4 Prodi's return to Italian politics and his second government (20062008) 3.5 2008 crisis and resignation 4 After politics 5 Honours and awards 5.1 Academic awards 6 Notes 7 See also 8 External links Personal

Prodi was born in Scandiano in the province of Reggio Emilia (Emilia-Romagna). He is the eighth of nine children of Mario Prodi an engineer originally from a peasant family and Enrica a primary school teacher. He has two sisters and six brothers five of them being like him university professors (one of whom Vittorio Prodi is also a Member of the European Parliament; see also Giorgio Prodi an oncologist and biosemiotician).

Prodi married Flavia Franzoni in 1969. He was married by then-priest Camillo Ruini now a well-known cardinal.23 They have two sons Giorgio and Antonio. He and his family still live in Bologna. Academic career

After completing his secondary education at the Liceo Ludovico Ariosto in Reggio Emilia Prodi graduated in law at the Catholic University of the Sacred Heart Milan in 1961 with a thesis on the role of Protectionism in the development of Italian industry. He then carried out postgraduate studies at the London School of Economics.4

In 1963 he became a teaching assistant for Beniamino Andreatta in the Department of Economics and the Faculty of Political Science at the University of Bologna subsequently serving as associate professor (1966) and finally (19711999) as Professor of Industrial Organisation and Industrial Policy. Prodi has also been a visiting professor at Harvard University and a researcher at the Stanford Research Institute. His research covers mainly competition regulations and the development of small and medium businesses. He is also interested in relations between states and markets and the dynamics of the different capitalistic models.

Prodi has received almost 20 honorary degrees from institutions in Italy and from the rest of Europe North America Asia and Africa.5 Politics Early political career Prodi's political career began as a left-of-centre reformist Christian Democrat and a disciple of Beniamino Andreatta another economist turned politician. During the mid-1970s he was appointed Minister of Industry. During Giulio Andreotti's government in 1978 he served as a Technical Minister; through the 1980s and early 1990s he continuously served various government committees. On 2 April 1978 Prodi and other teachers at the University of Bologna passed on a tip-off that revealed the whereabouts of the safe house where the kidnapped Aldo Moro the former Prime Minister was being held captive by the Brigate Rosse Red Brigades. Prodi claimed he had been given this tip-off by the founders of the Christian Democracy party contacted from beyond the grave via a sance and a Ouija board. Whilst during this supposed sance Prodi thought the word Gradoli referred to a town on the outskirts of Rome it probably referred to the Roman address of a Red Brigades safe house located at no. 96 Via Gradoli. Later other Italian members of the European Commission claimed Prodi had invented this story to conceal the real source of the tip-off which they believed to have originated somewhere among the far left Italian political groups.6 This issue came back again in 2005 when Prodi was accused of being "a KGB man" by Mario Scaramella.7 The same accusation was raised in the 1990s by the Mitrokhin Commission. From 19821989 and 19931994 Prodi an expert economist and negotiator was CEO of the powerful state-owned industrial holding company IRI. Though in this position he twice came under investigation firstly for an alleged conflict of interest in relation to contracts awarded to his own economic research company and secondly concerning the sale of the loss-making state-owned food conglomerate SME to the multinational Unilever for which he had for a time been a paid consultant however he was fully acquitted on both counts. Olive Tree and first cabinet (19961998) See also: Italian general election 1996 and The Olive Tree (political coalition) Olive Tree logo. In 1995 Prodi was one of the founders of the centre-left coalition The Olive Tree and as its main leader he defeated Silvio Berlusconi and his centre-right Pole of Freedoms coalition in the 1996 Italian general election. This led to his nomination as President of the Council of Ministers as the position of Prime Minister is usually called in Italy. Prodi's programme consisted in continuing the past governments' work of restoration of the country's economic health in order to pursue the then seemingly unreachable goal of leading the country within the strict European Monetary System parameters and make the country join the Euro. He succeeded in this in little more than six months. His government fell in 1998 when the Communist Refoundation Party withdrew its support. This led to the formation of a new government led by Massimo D'Alema as Prime Minister. There are those who claim that D'Alema deliberately engineered the collapse of the Prodi government to become Prime Minister himself.citation needed As the result of a vote of no confidence in Prodi's government D'Alema's nomination was passed by a single vote. This was the first and so far the only occasion in the history of the Italian republic on which a vote of no confidence had ever been called; the Republic's many previous governments had been brought down by a majority "no" vote on some crucially important piece of legislation (such as the budget). President of the European Commission (19992004) Main article: Prodi Commission The Prodi Commission in 1999. Romano Prodi (right) with Gran Persson and George W. Bush at Gunnebo Slott near Gothenburg Sweden 14 June 2001. In September 1999 Prodi a prominent pro-European became President of the European Commission thanks to the support of both the Christian-democratic European People's Party and social-democratic Party of European Socialists in the European Parliament. It was during Prodi's presidency in 2002 that eleven EU member states abandoned their national currencies and adopted the Euro as their single currency. This commission (the 10th) saw in increase in power and influence following Amsterdam Treaty. Some in the media described President Prodi as being the first "Prime Minister of the European Union".89 and in 2004 still during Prodi's presidency the EU was enlarged to admit several more countries most of them formerly part of the Soviet bloc. As well as the enlargement and Amsterdam Treaty the Prodi Commission also saw the signing and enforcement of the Nice Treaty as well as the conclusion and signing of the European Constitution: in which he introduced the "Convention method" of negotiation. Prodi's mandate expired on the 18 November 2004 whereupon he returned to domestic politics. Prodi's return to Italian politics and his second government (20062008) See also: Italian general election 2006 and Prodi II Cabinet Shortly before the end of his term as President of the European Commission Prodi returned to national Italian politics at the helm of the enlarged centre-left coalition The Union. Having no party of his own in order to officially state his candidacy for the 2006 general election Prodi came up with the idea of an apposite primary election the first of such kind to be ever introduced in Europe and seen by its creator (Prodi himself) as a democratic move to bring the public and its opinion closer to the Italian politics held on October 2005 which he won with over 70% of votes. Over four million people for the occasion went to cast a vote in the primary election. He thus led his coalition to the electoral campaign preceding the election eventually won by a very narrow margin of 25000 votes and a final majority of two seats in the Senate on 10 April. Prodi's appointment was somewhat delayed as the outgoing President of the Republic Carlo Azeglio Ciampi ended his mandate in May not having enough time for the usual procedure (consultations made by the President appointment of a Prime Minister motion of confidence and oath of office). After the acrimonious election of Giorgio Napolitano to replace Ciampi Prodi could proceed with his transition to government. On 16 May he was invited by Napolitano to form a government. The following day Prodi and his cabinet were sworn in. Romano Prodi (second from the right) at the Helligendamm G8 Summit 68 June 2007. Romano Prodi and his cabinet were sworn in on 17 May 2006. Prodi's cabinet drew in politicians from across his centre-left winning coalition in addition to Tommaso Padoa-Schioppa an unelected former official of the European Central Bank with no partisan membership. Romano Prodi obtained the support for his cabinet on 19 May at the Senate and on 23 May at the Chamber of Deputies. Also on 18 May Prodi laid out some sense of his new foreign policy when he pledged to withdraw Italian troops from Iraq and called the Iraq war a "grave mistake that has not solved but increased the problem of security".10 The coalition led by Romano Prodi thanks to the electoral law which gives the winner a sixty seat majority can count on a good majority in the Chamber of Deputies but only on a very narrow majority in the Senate. The composition of the coalition is very varied throwing parties of communist ideology like the Party of Italian Communists and Communist Refoundation Party together with parties of Catholic inspiration like Democracy is Freedom The Daisy and UDEUR Populars the latter led by Clemente Mastella former chairman of Christian Democracy. Therefore according to critics it is difficult to have a single policy in different key areas such as economics and foreign politics (for instance Italian military presence in Afghanistan). In his earlier months as PM Prodi had a key role in the creation of a multinational peacekeeping force in Lebanon following the 2006 Israel-Lebanon conflict. Prodi's government faced a crisis over policies in early 2007 after just nine months of government. Three ministers in Prodi's Cabinet boycotted a vote in January to continue funding for Italian troop deployments in Afghanistan. Lawmakers approved the expansion of the US military base Caserma Ederle at the end of January but the victory was so narrow that Deputy Prime Minister Francesco Rutelli criticised members of the coalition who had not supported the government. At around the same time Justice Minister Clemente Mastella of the coalition member UDEUR Populars said he would rather see the government fall than support its unwed couples legislation.11 Tens of thousands of people marched in Vicenza against the expansion of Caserma Ederle which saw the participation of some leading radical left members.12 Harsh debates followed in the Italian Senate on 20 February 2007. Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Affairs Minister Massimo D'Alema declared during an official visit in Ibiza Spain that without a majority on foreign policy affairs the government would resign. The following day D'Alema gave a speech at the Senate representing the government clarifying his foreign policy and asking the Senate to vote for or against it. In spite of the fear of many senators that Prodi's defeat would return Silvio Berlusconi to power the Senate did not approve a motion backing Prodi's government foreign policy two votes shy of the required majority of 160.13 After a Government meeting on 21 February Romano Prodi tendered his resignation to the President Giorgio Napolitano who cut short an official visit to Bologna in order to receive the Prime Minister. Prodi's spokesman indicated that he would only agree to form a new Government "if and only if he is guaranteed the full support of all the parties in the majority from now on."14 On 22 February centre-left coalition party leaders backed a non-negotiable list of twelve political conditions given by Prodi as conditions of his remaining in office. President Napolitano held talks with political leaders on 23 February to decide whether to confirm Prodi's Government ask Prodi to form a new government or call fresh elections.15 Following these talks on 24 February President Napolitano asked Prodi to remain in office but to submit to a vote of confidence in both houses.1516 "I will seek a vote of confidence as soon as possible with renewed impetus and a united and determined coalition" Prodi said after meeting with President Giorgio Napolitano.17 On 28 February the Senate voted to grant confidence to Prodi's Government. Though facing strong opposition from the center-right coalition the vote resulted in a 162157 victory. He then faced a vote of confidence in the lower house on 2 March which he won as expected with a large majority of 342198.18 On 14 October 2007 Prodi oversaw the merger of two main Italian centre-left parties the Democrats of the Left and Democracy is Freedom The Daisy creating the new Democratic Party. Prodi himself led the merger of the two parties which had been planned over a twelve-year period and became the first President of the party. He announced his resignation from that post on 16 April 2008 two days after the Democratic Party's defeat in the general election. 2008 crisis and resignation See also: 2008 Italian political crisis In early January 2008 Justice Minister and UDEUR Populars leader Clemente Mastella resigned after his wife Sandra Lonardo was put under house arrest for corruption charges. He initially announced external support for the government only to withdraw it a few days later citing lack of solidarity from the majority parties and declaring his party would vote against the government bills since then. With three Senators UDEUR was instrumental to ensure a narrow centre-left majority in the Italian Senate.19 On 17 January 2008 Prodi became the Minister of Justice ad interim. This caused Prodi to ask for a confidence vote in both Chambers: he won a clear majority in the Chamber of Deputies on 23 January20 but was defeated 156 to 161 (with 1 abstention)21 in the Senate the next day. He consequently tendered his resignation as Prime Minister to President Giorgio Napolitano who accepted it and appointed the President of the Senate Franco Marini with the task of evaulating the possibility to form an interim government to implement electoral reforms prior to holding elections. Marini after consultation with all major political forces acknowledged the impossibility of doing so on 5 February forcing Napolitano to announce the end of the legislature.22 Prodi said that he would not seek to lead a new government.23 In the election that followed in April 2008 Berlusconi's right-wing coalition prevailed over the Democratic Party. After politics On 19 March 2008 during the political campaign for the snap general election Romano Prodi stated "I called it a day with Italian politics and maybe with politics in general."24 On 12 September 2008 Prodi was named by the UN as head of a joint AU-UN panel aimed at enhancing peacekeeping operations in Africa.25 On 6 February 2009 he was appointed Professor-at-Large at the Watson Institute for International Studies of Brown University.26 Honours and awards Knight Grand Cross of the Order of Merit of the Italian Republic 2 June 1993 Knight Grand Cross of the Order of the Star of Romania Order of the Three Stars 1st Class 2007 Academic awards Laurea in Giurisprudenza (110 e lode) Universit Cattolica del Sacro Cuore di Milano (1961) Madras University (India 1998) Sofia University (Bulgaria 1998) Universitat Politecnica di Barcellona (Spain 1998) Brown University (United States 1999) University of Michigan (United States 1999) Economical studies Bucharest (Romania 2000) Catholic University of Leuven (Belgium 2000) Malta University (2000) Modena e Reggio Emilia University (Italy 2000) Ottawa University (Canada 2000) St. Gallen University (Switzerland 2000) Kyung Hee University (South Korea 2000) Pisa University (Italy 2001) University of Tirana (Albania 2001) Carleton University (Ottawa Canada 2001) Instituto de Empresa di Madrid (Spain 2002) Oxford University (United Kingdom 2002) Pavia University (Italy 2002) Skopje University (2003) Tunis University (Tunisia 2003) Calabria University (Italy 2003) Torino University (Italy 2004) Lublin University (Poland 2004) Tongji University (Shanghai 2006) Milan Catholic University (Italy 2007) Addis Abeba University (2007) Kolkata University (2007) Friburg University (2008) MIRBIS University Moscow (2009) Chinese Academy of Governance (P.R. China 2010) Nova Gorica University (2010) Nankai (P.R. China 2010) Notes "Former Italian PM to head African Union-UN peacekeeping panel" www.romanoprodi.it 12 September 2008 http://www.romanoprodi.it/wordpress/notizie/former-italian-prime-minister-to-head-african-union-un-peacekeeping-panel66.html. Retrieved 29 June 2010  "Profile: Romano Prodi". BBC News. 10 May 1999. http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/europe/299254.stm. Retrieved 25 February 2007.  Fisher Ian (12 April 2006). "A tenuous time for Mr. Serenity". International Herald Tribune. http://www.iht.com/articles/2006/04/11/news/prodi.php. Retrieved 25 February 2007.  Biography of Romano Prodi (in Italian) http://www.romanoprodi.it/cgi-bin/adon.cgiactdoc&doc28 Willan Philip (3 August 1999). "Seance points to problem for Prodi". The Guardian (UK). http://www.guardian.co.uk/eurocommission/Story/0276320641200.html. Retrieved 25 February 2007.  "'Multiple attempts' on Litvinenko". BBC. 22 January 2007. http://www.independent.co.uk/news/europe/the-seance-that-came-back-to-haunt-romano-prodi-517786.html.  Prodi to Have Wide New Powers as Head of the European Commission iht.com 16/04/1999 Commentary: Romano Prodi: Europe's First Prime Minister (int'l edition) Businessweek.com 1999 Sturcke James (18 May 2006). "Prodi condemns Iraq war as 'grave mistake'". The Guardian (UK). http://www.guardian.co.uk/Iraq/Story/0177804100.html. Retrieved 25 February 2007.  "Rift threatens Italian coalition". BBC News. 2 February 2007. http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/europe/6324829.stm. Retrieved 25 February 2007.  "Italians march in US base protest". BBC News. 17 February 2007. http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/europe/6370671.stm. Retrieved 25 February 2007.  "Italian PM Prodi resigns after foreign policy defeat". CBC News. 21 February 2007. http://www.cbc.ca/world/story/2007/02/21/italy-prodi.html. Retrieved 25 February 2007.  "Italian PM hands in resignation". BBC News. 21 February 2007. http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/indepth/6383051.stm. Retrieved 24 February 2007.  a b "Italian coalition 'to back Prodi". BBC News. 23 February 2007. http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/europe/6388455.stm. Retrieved 24 February 2007.  "Italian PM asked to resume duties". BBC News. 24 February 2007. http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/europe/6391669.stm. Retrieved 24 February 2007.  Italy's Leader Asks Premier to Stay on. Associated Press 25 February 2007. . http://edition.cnn.com/2007/WORLD/europe/03/02/italy.prodi.reut/index.html. dead link "Italy's ruling coalition weakened". BBC News. 17 January 2008. http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/europe/7194342.stm. Retrieved 24 January 2008.  "Embattled Italy PM backed by MPs". BBC News. 23 January 2008. http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/europe/7205578.stm. Retrieved 24 January 2008.  http://it.wikinews.org/wiki/Crisidigoverno:ilSenatosfiduciaProdi (Italian) "DOMANI LO SCIOGLIMENTO DELLE CAMERE". Ansa. 5 February 2008. Archived from the original on 4 February 2008. http://web.archive.org/web/20080204214404/http://www.ansa.it/opencms/export/site/visualizzafdg.html12342748.html. Retrieved 5 February 2008.  Andrew Davis and Steve Scherer "Prodi Government Near Collapse After Key Ally Defects (Update2)" Bloomberg.com 22 January 2008. ANSA. "Prodi lascio la politica ma il mondo pieno di occasioni". Archived from the original on 30 March 2008. http://web.archive.org/web/20080330070541/http://www.ansa.it/opencms/export/site/visualizzafdg.html18938668.html. Retrieved 3 September 2008.  http://www.alertnet.org/thenews/newsdesk/N12513725.htm "Former Italian Prime Minister Appointed Professor-at-Large" Brown University 6 February 2009 http://news.brown.edu/pressreleases/2009/02/prodi. Retrieved 29 June 2010  See also Enlargement of the European Union Euro launch European constitution Italian general election 2006 Lisbon Agenda Prodi Commission External links Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Romano Prodi Personal website Democratic Party website Official Site of the President of the European Commission. Includes a curriculum vitae from which some of the information in this article was drawn. Political offices Preceded by Carlo Donat-Cattin Minister of Industry Commerce and Craftsmanship 19781979 Succeeded by Franco Nicolazzi Preceded by Lamberto Dini Prime Minister of Italy 19961998 Succeeded by Massimo D'Alema Preceded by Manuel Marn Acting President of the European Commission 19992004 Succeeded by Jos Manuel Barroso Preceded by Silvio Berlusconi Prime Minister of Italy 20062008 Succeeded by Silvio Berlusconi Preceded by Clemente Mastella Minister of Justice Acting 2008 Succeeded by Luigi Scotti Italian Chamber of Deputies Preceded by Title jointly held Member of the Italian Chamber of Deputies 19961999 Succeeded by Title jointly held Member of the Italian Chamber of Deputies 20062008 Party political offices Preceded by Party created President of the Democratic Party 20072008 Succeeded by Rosy Bindi  Romano Prodi v d ePrime Minister of Italy Kingdom of Italy Cavour  Ricasoli  Rattazzi  Farini  Minghetti  La Marmora  Ricasoli  Rattazzi  Menabrea  Lanza  Minghetti  Depretis  Cairoli  Depretis  Cairoli  Depretis  Crispi  Starabba  Giolitti  Crispi  Starabba  Pelloux  Saracco  Zanardelli  Giolitti  Tittoni  Fortis  Sonnino  Giolitti  Sonnino  Luzzatti  Giolitti  Salandra  Boselli  Orlando  Nitti  Giolitti  Bonomi  Facta  Mussolini  Badoglio  Bonomi  Parri  De Gasperi Italian Republic De Gasperi  Pella  Fanfani  Scelba  Segni  Zoli  Fanfani  Segni  Tambroni  Fanfani  Leone  Moro  Leone  Rumor  Colombo  Andreotti  Rumor  Moro  Andreotti  Cossiga  Forlani  Spadolini  Fanfani  Craxi  Fanfani  Goria  De Mita  Andreotti  Amato  Ciampi  Berlusconi  Dini  Prodi  D'Alema  Amato  Berlusconi  Prodi  Berlusconi v d eProdi I Cabinet (1996 1998) Veltroni  Dini  Napolitano  Ciampi  Visco  Andreatta  Flick  Bersani  Pinto  Berlinguer  Bindi  Treu  Di Pietro  Costa  Burlando  Ronchi  Maccanico  Fantozzi  Bassanini  Turco  Finocchiaro  Bogi  v d eProdi II Cabinet (2006 - 2008) D'Alema  Rutelli  Amato  Padoa-Schioppa  Parisi  Mastella  Bersani  De Castro  Fioroni  Mussi  Turco  Damiano  Ferrero  Di Pietro  Bianchi  Pecoraro Scanio  Gentiloni  Bonino  Chiti  Nicolais  Lanzillotta  Santagata  Pollastrini  Melandri  Bindi  v d e Presidents of the European Council President-in-Office (19752009) Liam Cosgrave  Aldo Moro  Gaston Thorn  Joop den Uyl  James Callaghan  Leo Tindemans  Anker Jrgensen  Helmut Schmidt  Valry Giscard d'Estaing  Jack Lynch  Francesco Cossiga  Charles Haughey  Pierre Werner  Dries van Agt  Margaret Thatcher  Wilfried Martens  Anker Jrgensen  Poul Schlter  Helmut Kohl  Andreas Papandreou  Franois Mitterrand  Garret FitzGerald  Bettino Craxi  Jacques Santer  Ruud Lubbers  Margaret Thatcher  Wilfried Martens  Poul Schlter  Helmut Kohl  Andreas Papandreou  Felipe Gonzlez  Franois Mitterrand  Charles Haughey  Giulio Andreotti  Jacques Santer  Ruud Lubbers  Poul Schlter  Anbal Cavaco Silva  John Major  Poul Nyrup Rasmussen  Jean-Luc Dehaene  Andreas Papandreou  Helmut Kohl  Jacques Chirac  Felipe Gonzlez  Lamberto Dini  Romano Prodi  John Bruton  Wim Kok  Jean-Claude Juncker  Tony Blair  Viktor Klima  Gerhard Schrder  Paavo Lipponen  Antnio Guterres  Jacques Chirac  Gran Persson  Guy Verhofstadt  Jos Mara Aznar Lpez  Anders Fogh Rasmussen  Costas Simitis  Silvio Berlusconi  Bertie Ahern  Jan Peter Balkenende  Jean-Claude Juncker  Tony Blair  Wolfgang Schssel  Matti Vanhanen  Angela Merkel  Jos Scrates  Janez Jana  Nicolas Sarkozy  Mirek Topolnek  Jan Fischer  Fredrik Reinfeldt Permament President (since 2009) Herman Van Rompuy v d eEuropean Commission Presidents and their Commissions ECSC: Jean Monnet (1952) Ren Mayer (1955) Paul Finet (1958) Piero Malvestiti (1959) Rinaldo Del Bo (1963) Albert Copp (1963) EAEC: Louis Armand (1958) tienne Hirsch (1959) Pierre Chatenet (1962) EEC: Walter Hallstein (1958)2 EC: Jean Rey (1967) Franco Maria Malfatti (1970) Sicco Mansholt (1972) Franois-Xavier Ortoli (1973) Roy Jenkins (1977) Gaston Thorn (1981) Jacques Delors (1985)2 EU: Jacques Delors (1993) Jacques Santer (1995) Manuel Marn (1999) Romano Prodi (1999) Jos Manuel Barroso (2004)2 Commission President   President of the European Council   Council Presidency   President of Parliament v d eLeaders of the Democratic Party Secretary Walter Veltroni (20072009)  Dario Franceschini (2009)  Pier Luigi Bersani (since 2009) Deputy Secretary Dario Franceschini (20072009)  Enrico Letta (since 2009) President Romano Prodi (20072008)  Rosy Bindi (since 2009) Vice Presidents Marina Sereni (since 2009)  Ivan Scalfarotto (since 2009) Leader in the Chamber of Deputies Antonello Soro (since 2007)  Dario Franceschini (since 2009) Leader in the Senate Anna Finocchiaro (since 2007) Persondata Name Prodi Romano Alternative names Short description Politician Date of birth 9 August 1939 Place of birth Scandiano Italy Date of death Place of death