Closing Ceremony – UfM Grant Scheme for Employment Promotion: Regional response to the COVID-19 pandemic

14 July 2022, Barcelona. In the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic, the UfM started very early on to mobilize its resources, capacities, and partners to tackle the economic impact of the crisis. Acting upon this call and fully aware of the far-reaching socio-economic repercussions of the crisis, the UfM, with the financial support of the Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit GmbH (GIZ) on behalf of the Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development of Germany (BMZ), launched a Grant Scheme for Employment Promotion in August 2020, aiming to improve the employment situation for the most vulnerable population segments in the region with a focus on women and young people.

Four projects were awarded the UfM Grant, benefitting thousands of people in 7 UfM Member States, namely, Greece, Italy, Jordan, Lebanon, Malta, Morocco, and Tunisia. These projects, all promoted by NGOs tackle the labour challenges in the fields of entrepreneurship, women empowerment, sustainable tourism, as well as education and research with an overall budget of 1.13 million euros.

The UfM will bring on 14 July 2022 the promoters, local implementing partners, and beneficiaries of all projects together in Barcelona to showcase the work done, and the lessons learned from the 4 projects:

• FLOWER – Fostering Local Market Opportunities for Women’s Empowerment and Resilience,
• MAST – Mediterranean Alliance for Sustainable Tourism post COVID-19,
• RISE – Resilience and Innovation through Strengthened Entrepreneurship,
• SEARChED – Strengthening Employment and entrepreneurial Activities to Recover COVID-19 Epidemic Damages).

The Closing Ceremony will also bring stakeholders and partners in the fields of employment, employability and skill development from the UfM Region, including regional and international organizations, BSOs, NGOs, CSOs, Private Sector representatives, Academia, Media, among others. An Outcome Document will emanate from the event to guide future action.