GTMO 5+5 Ministers call for reinforced cooperation in transport and logistics as a means to achieve stronger regional integration and economic development

• GTMO 5+5 Ministers welcomed the leading role of the UfM in the promotion of regional cooperation, dialogue and the implementation of projects contributing to regional development, stability and integration

12 December 2018, Nouakchott. In the framework of the Ninth Conference of Group of Transport Ministers of the Western Mediterranean (GTMO 5+5) held in Nouakchott (Mauritania) on 11-12 December 2018, the Ministers welcomed the leading role of the UfM in the promotion of regional cooperation, dialogue and the implementation of projects contributing to regional development, stability and integration, and reaffirmed their desire for continued exchange and cooperation in transport and logistics, with a view to provide practical answers to sustainable development in the region.

The UfM Secretariat represented by Deputy Secretary General for Transport and Urban Development Ambassador Ayse Asya, reiterated the close and effective collaboration between the Union for the Mediterranean Secretariat and the Western Mediterranean Forum (5+5 Dialogue), as well as with the GTMO 5+5 following the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding in November 2013.

On this occasion, Ministers endorsed the final Declaration, recognizing the so-called UfM-isation of the Euro-Mediterranean Transport Cooperation following the adoption of the UfM Roadmap by the Foreign Affairs Ministers in January 2017, and agreed to continue to actively participate in UfM initiatives and projects in the framework of the UfM Regional Platform on Transport Connectivity and its Working Groups.

In addition, the conference highlighted the joint work carried out on concrete transport projects, namely the Completion of the Central Section of the Trans-Maghreb Motorway Axis project, promoted by GTMO 5+5, and the LOGISMED Training Activities (LOGISMED-TA) project, endorsed by the 43 UfM Member countries.

On the margins of the Ministerial Conference, the UfM Secretariat participated in the Meeting of the GTMO 5+5 Experts Group gathered on 11 December 2018 in preparation of the conference. The UfM Secretariat also participated in the IEMed Seminar “MedThink5plus5: The road towards integration: transport and logistics in the Western Mediterranean” held on 10 and 11 December 2018, which addressed the existing tools and projects for the implementation of a multimodal network in the 5+5 area. During her closing remarks, UfM Deputy Secretary General Amb. Asya highlighted the UfM’s activities underway as well as the main milestones for the year ahead in the transport sector, and invited participants to take an active part in the upcoming meetings of the UfM Regional Platform on Transport Connectivity.

Additional Information

The Western Mediterranean Forum, commonly known as 5+5 Dialogue, is an informal political dialogue which brings together ten countries in the Western Mediterranean region, namely Algeria, Spain, France, Italy, Libya, Malta, Mauritania, Morocco, Portugal and Tunisia. Launched in 1990, it seeks to reinforce and enrich political, economic and cultural dialogue between both sides of the Mediterranean.

Established in 1995 in Paris, the Group of Transport Ministers of the Western Mediterranean (GTMO 5+5) aims to promote cooperation in transport at the highest level in the Western Mediterranean and contribute to the Euro-Mediterranean Partnership. The members of the GTMO 5 + 5 are the Ministries of Transport of Algeria, France, Italy, Libya, Malta, Mauritania, Morocco, Portugal, Spain and Tunisia). The UfM Secretariat, the European Commission (DG MOVE) and the General Secretariat of the Arab Maghreb Union (AMU) also participate as observers, whilst CETMO acts as Technical Secretary. At the Ministerial Conference in Tunis in March 2007, the ministers adopted and signed a protocol for cooperation with the aim of strengthening the group’s institutional structure.

The GTMO 5+5 Presidency rotates between countries and is transferred at the Ministerial Conference, which is held every two years. A work program is proposed and implemented by the Technical Secretariat and the group of experts on the basis of the conclusions of the Ministerial Conference. The group of experts is made up of the national coordinators of the ministries in charge of transport and meets twice a year to control the execution of the work program.

Operational cooperation between the UfM Secretariat and the 5+5 Dialogue in the field of transport was fully consolidated on 14 November 2013, after the signature of a Memorandum of Understanding between the UfM Secretariat and the GTMO 5+5 within the framework of the first UfM Ministerial Conference on Transport.