News

Read the stories of three local champions in the fight against climate change, in the framework of the UfM-supported project Clima-Med.   31 July 2020. Born and raised in Beirut, Marwan Kaiss is the Mayor of the Batloun Municipality in the Chouf area, 45km inland from Lebanon’s bustling capital city. Passionate about preparing Lebanon for the future, he returned to university at 53 years old and completed his Masters at the age of 60 and was then elected to his current position. Despite challenging circumstances, much of his time in public office has been at the forefront of a burgeoning local… read more

The 2020 UfM Mediterranean Climate Week discussed, among other topics, the progress of international public and private climate finance flows and how to optimise their mobilisation. Under the current scenarios, Southern and Eastern Mediterranean countries per capita energy demand is estimated to increase by about 60% by 2040. These countries have attracted 9% of the international public climate finance commitments each year. Considering these countries are representing 4.1% of the global population, it shows the region attracts a high flow of investment. 14 July 2020. The limit of a 1.5ºC increase in the average temperature, not to be surpassed as… read more

The exercise will point to energy efficient solutions, using a new online tool developed by the Copenhagen Centre on Energy Efficiency together with United for Efficiency. By incorporating efficiency into existing and planned infrastructure systems, costs can be controlled, service delivery can be improved and access expanded without necessarily adding to the cost of the service. 18 May 2020. The Mediterranean local communities play a key role in the energy transition. Cities are in the best position to take action on the ground and meet local needs in order to address a growing energy demand, the climate emergency and the… read more

The Mediterranean region is warming 20% faster than the global average, according to the first-ever scientific report on the impact of climate change in the Mediterranean, presented at the COP25 The UfM Secretary General called for evidence-based climate policies in order for the Mediterranean region to effectively address pressing environmental challenges. The UfM signed partnership agreements with the World Meteorological Organisation and the Copenhagen Centre on Energy Efficiency. It also presented major regional initiatives on climate action together with the Republic of Cyprus, the European Commission and UNDP. Madrid, 13 December 2019. The Mediterranean region has already reached the temperature rise… read more

13 December, Madrid – The UfM and the United Nations Development Program (UNDP) organized a side-event at the UN Conference COP25 focusing on identifying mitigation and adaptation actions in Southern and Eastern Mediterranean countries. The session also discussed how to achieve Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs’) implementation through supporting community-based mitigation, adaptation and cross-cutting actions. Quote by Cassie Flynn, Strategic Advisor on Climate Change at the Executive Office, UNDP: “transparency and inclusiveness are needed for robust and consistent NDCs”. This side-event also gave an opportunity to present and share experience about possible synergies amongst UfM member countries on how to mobilize… read more

13 December, Madrid. The UfM region is performing well in attracting international public climate finance. Southern and Eastern Mediterranean countries have attracted between 12% and 13% of the global international public climate finance commitments each year. However, despite this positive performance, the UfM region still has a margin of progress, as investments in adaptation are only representing approximatively one-third of mitigation commitments. The UfM presented the true-to-life steps to accomplish climate actions, from initiating policies to enhancing climate finance access and action implementation in the margins of the UN conference COP25 in Madrid. Quote by Mr. Mokhtar Hammami, Minister of… read more

Cyprus lies at the meeting point of the Mediterranean, the Middle East and North Africa, areas where climate change is expected to take a heavy toll in the coming decades  12 December 2019, Madrid. The Mediterranean region is getting warmer and drier at a faster rate than the global average. In the margins of the UN Conference COP25 in Madrid, the UfM co-organised a side-event with the Ministry of Agriculture, Rural Development and Environment of Cyprus to gather scientists and decisionmakers to evaluate the current state and risks related to climate and environmental change. Quote from Grammenos Mastrojeni, Deputy Secretary… read more

The Secretary General of the Union for the Mediterranean (UfM), Nasser Kamel, and the Executive Director of the Regions of Climate Action (R20), Christophe Nuttall, signed a partnership agreement to promote climate finance opportunities, notably at the level of regional and local authorities and small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), with the help of private finance leveraged through public finance. Paris, le 24 October 2019. Paris, 24 October 2019. UfM Secretary General, Nasser Kamel, met today with the Executive Director of R20, Christophe Nuttall, on the occasion of the One Planet Summit dedicated to “Scaling up blended finance for low carbon and… read more

The energy demand is estimated to increase by 62% in the Southern and Eastern Mediterranean countries by 2040. Showcased as a best practice in the region, the UfM-supported Tafila Wind Farm project powers 83 000 homes, represents almost 25% of Jordan’s energy produced from renewable sources and serves as a good example of involving local authorities to benefit from new renewable energy sources Lisbon, 18 July 2019. The UfM is organising the second edition of the Energy and Climate Business Forum today in Lisbon, in partnership with the Portuguese Ministry of Environment and Energy Transition and the Portuguese Energy Agency… read more

Paris, 13 June 2019. The UfM Secretary General Nasser Kamel has participated in the UfM Gas Platform Conference held today in Paris. The conference has tackled the key Role of LNG (Liquefied Natural Gas) in the Mediterranean Gas Security and has gathered high-level speakers including the Minister of Petroleum of Egypt and the Director-General for Energy of the European Commission, as well as the Director-General of OME (Observatoire Méditerranéen de l’Energie) which ensures the secretariat of the UfM Gas Platform. The Mediterranean region is home to an increasing population of over 500 million people with growing energy demand. Indeed, a 62% increase… read more