EIB grants a €70 million loan to UfM-labelled project EuroMed University of Fes

Barcelona, 4 April 2017.  The European Investment Bank (EIB) has approved a €70 million loan to support the EuroMed University of Fes (UEMF).  The loan represents a substantial contribution for the construction of the UEMF eco-campus. It will consolidate the regional dimension of the University, whose principal vocation is to build academic, scientific and intercultural bridges between both rims of the Mediterranean.

The EIB loan is to finance the construction of the eco-campus, including the teaching and research premises, the sports area, the library and other facilities and equipment. This contribution complements others from international, European and Moroccan financial partners.

The UEMF is a flagship project of the Union for the Mediterranean initiated by His Majesty the King Mohammed VI, aiming to have the capacity to host over 6,000 students representing diverse nationalities in the Euro-Mediterranean region and Sub-Saharan Africa. It is expected that around 80% of the student body will benefit from international mobility experiences with double diplomas. It also received the institutional support of the Steering Committee of the COP22 as a “model of eco-space, combining academic life, research, innovation and technology transfer in a clean environment, using the latest technologies for sustainable development”.

Students from various nationalities are currently enrolled on UEMF academic and research programmes which are focused on important topics for the development of the Euro-Mediterranean region and launched in partnership with well-known Higher Education Institutions such as the National Institutes of Applied Sciences (INSA Group), the École Polytechnique de Paris, the Università degli Studi di Firenze, the Politecnico di Milano, the Politecnico di Torino, the University of Porto, the Universidad Politécnica de Madrid, the Universitat Politècnica de Catalunya, the École Nationale Supérieure des Arts Décoratifs and the Université de Paris 1 Panthéon-Sorbonne. The overall construction of the University is expected to be completed by 2019-2020.

“I wish to express my sincere appreciation for the support of the EIB to the EuroMed University of Fes and to praise the active role of the UfM Secretariat in this achievement” said Prof. Bousmina, President of the EuroMed University of Fes.

NOTES TO EDITORS

Labelled by the UfM Member States in 2012, the EuroMed University of Fes is as a new centre of excellence contributing to regional stability and integration through the promotion of intercultural dialogue and exchange, sharing knowledge and cooperation in the fields of higher education, research and innovation. It aims at building a new generation of young people with a unique Euro-Mediterranean profile, who can actively play a role in transforming the region from their future positions in an effective and cooperative way between both shores of the Mediterranean.