An Italian aid worker has been kidnapped in Sudan's Darfur region.

Italy's foreign ministry says 34-year-old Francesco Azzara was abducted Sunday while driving to the airport in Nyala, the capital of South Darfur state.

The ministry says it is working with the United Nations mission in Darfur and local authorities to resolve the matter.

Azzara is a doctor with the Italian medical aid group Emergency. He was on his second tour in Nyala, where Emergency opened a pediatric health center last year.