The Union for the Mediterranean calls for increased collaboration with 5+5 Dialogue countries in research, innovation and higher education
- 5+5 Dialogue countries adopted a new set of priorities and a work plan for 2019-2020, promoting sustainable economic growth, social inclusion and creating new opportunities for youth in the Western Mediterranean Region
- The work plan includes the project “BlueSkills: Blue Jobs and Responsible Growth in the Mediterranean”, labelled by the UfM in March 2019
Rome, 10 June 2019. The Secretary General of the Union for the Mediterranean (UfM), Nasser Kamel, addressed the Ministers in charge of Research, Innovation and Higher Education of the countries of the Western Mediterranean Forum (commonly referred to as “5+5 Dialogue”) on the occasion of their Fourth Ministerial Conference which took place in Rome, Italy, on 10 June 2019. The 5+5 Dialogue gathers five countries from the north of the Mediterranean (Spain, France, Italy, Malta and Portugal) and five countries from the southern shore (Algeria, Libya, Morocco, Mauritania and Tunisia).
“I wish to assure you that the UfM Secretariat will continue to promote your actions and support their concrete implementation through increased connections with UfM regional dialogue platforms, initiatives and projects”, declared Nasser Kamel during his statement.
Ministers of Research, Innovation and Higher Education of the 5+5 Dialogue countries adopted new priorities for promoting sustainable economic growth, social inclusion and creating new opportunities for youth in the Western Mediterranean Region.
They expressed, in the Declaration of Rome adopted on 10 June 2019, “political support to the UfM labelled projects and initiatives on research, innovation, higher education, advanced training and capacity building”.
Among the actions included in the work plan 2019-2020 of the 5+5 Dialogue on Research, Innovation and Higher Education, the project “BlueSkills: Blue Jobs and Responsible Growth in the Mediterranean” which was labelled by the UfM in March 2019 is a concrete example of how the Western Mediterranean Forum can serve as an incubator of innovative solutions to address challenges that the whole region is facing.
Minister of Higher Education, Scientific Research and Information and Communication Technologies of Mauritania, Sidi Ould Salem, announced his country’s commitment to take over the presidency of the 5+5 Dialogue on Research, Innovation and Higher Education, in close cooperation with Italy, the outgoing presidency, until the next Ministerial Conference scheduled to take place in Nouakchott in 2021.
The European Commission and the Arab Maghreb Union, which, like the Union for the Mediterranean, have the status of observers in the 5+5 Dialogue, also took part in the Ministerial Conference.
More information
On the 1 and 2 of July, 2019, the UfM is co-organising in Malta with the European Institute of the Mediterranean (IEMed) the IVth MedThink 5+5 Forum under the title “Fostering Innovative Alliances in the Western Mediterranean. A Basin of Opportunities for a Sustainable Future”.
About the 5+5 Dialogue
The 5+5 Dialogue gathers five countries from the north of the Mediterranean (Spain, France, Italy, Malta and Portugal) and five countries from the southern shore (Algeria, Libya, Morocco, Mauritania and Tunisia). The first Conference of Ministers in charge of Research, Innovation and Higher Education was held in Rabat (Morocco) in 2013, followed by Madrid (Spain) in 2015 and Tunis (Tunisia) in 2017.
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