Regional Integration in the Union for the Mediterranean 2025: Progress Report
In the year that marks the 30th anniversary of the Barcelona Process promoting Euro-Mediterranean partnership, Regional Integration in the Union for the Mediterranean 2025 offers findings and insights on the state of integration in the region and recommendations for actionable policies to advance toward shared objectives. The analysis focuses on developments since 2021, when the first OECD report measuring the progress of integration in the Union for the Mediterranean (UfM) was completed. It shows that integration in the region constituted by the UfM advances but remains below potential across different economic dimensions, due to persistent challenges to the movement of goods, services, capital, people, and ideas. At the same time, this report observes the increasing integration of UfM members with countries in the broader Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region, where Gulf countries, in particular, have become major contributors to foreign direct investment in the UfM region. Indeed, the Union for the Mediterranean is home to more than 800 million people, representing over 10% of the world population in 2024; the history and strategic geographical position of the region make its role for connectivity and global trade, including trade of energy resources, critical.
September 2025
