•Ministers in charge of water from the UfM Member States recalled that the Mediterranean region is particularly vulnerable to water scarcity and that climate change exacerbates the pressure on existing water resources in the region. •They agreed to develop a Union for the Mediterranean Water Agenda to help UfM Member States implement sustainable and integrated water management policies and contribute to a sustainable livelihood for the region’s citizens, recalling the importance of the Paris agreement and reaffirming their commitment to the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable development. •Ministers also called for an improvement of access to finance in order to face… read more
Barcelona, 22 March 2017 – The Mediterranean region is one of the areas in the world most vulnerable to climate change as well as one of the most impacted by human water demand, where more than 180 million people are affected by water poverty and an additional 60 million face water stress to some degree. These figures highlight the scale of the challenge faced by the countries in the region. On World Water Day the UfM Secretariat emphasises the crucial need to continue enhancing regional cooperation to successfully address this issue of growing concern. By promoting collaborative work in the… read more
Around 100 representatives of governments, agencies, civil society, private sector as well as environment and climate change experts are gathering today, and until Thursday, at the UfM headquarters. The aim of the meetings is to advance the regional agenda on environment and climate change for the next years and support all UfM Member States in the implementation of the Paris Agreement through their nationally determined contributions…. read more
Barcelona, 14 March 2017. The Director-General for EU Neighbourhood and Enlargement at the European Commission, Christian Danielsson, visited the UfM Secretariat today. Danielsson and Sijilmassi opened the 1st UfM Working Group on Environment and Climate Change, held in Palau de Pedralbes, Barcelona. The 1st UfM Working Group on Environment and Climate Change is a follow-up to the Ministerial Meeting on Environment and Climate Change held on 13 May 2014, which defined a Euro-Mediterranean Agenda for Sustainable Development, and aims to discuss the advancement work on the recommendations made by the Ministers. The Director-General for EU Neighbourhood and Enlargement at the European… read more
More than 50 representatives of governments, international organisations and the scientific community will meet today, for the first time, at the UfM headquarters, to set the ground for the publication of the first ever assessment report on the impact of climate change in the Mediterranean region…. read more
Youssef Chahed, Head of Government of Tunisia, Federica Mogherini, High Representative of the European Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy and Vice-President of the European Commission, and Fathallah Sijilmassi, Secretary General of the Union for the Mediterranean (UfM), gathered today in Bizerte to launch the “Integrated Programme for the Protection of Lake Bizerte against Pollution”, labelled by the 43 UfM Member States…. read more
More than 350 participants from 16 Southern and Northern Mediterranean countries including green entrepreneurs, small and medium-sized enterprises, policy-makers, civil society organisations, financing institutions and business networks gathered on 18-20 October 2016, in Barcelona, to discuss and share the latest sustainable development initiatives and green innovations developed in the Mediterranean with the aim to achieve productive and circular economies…. read more
• Water is fundamental to human security, key to social and economic growth and the Mediterranean region is currently facing varying water-related situations and challenges. • The 2nd Meeting of the Drafting Group of the UfM Water Expert Group (WEG) has accelerated the work on the regional agenda on water to build a joint proposal of action plan for the region…. read more
Today, at the Dead Sea in Jordan, Ministers of International Cooperation and Planning from the 43 member countries of the Union for the Mediterranean (UfM) defined key steps to enhance the impact of regional cooperation…. read more
• The blue economy offers enormous potential for job creation and investment in the Mediterranean, thus contributing to human development, stability and regional integration. This untapped potential can only be exploited through the better coordination of maritime affairs among all Mediterranean countries. • The 1st UfM Working Group on the Blue Economy took place in Turku, Finland, with the aim of discussing the state of play of regional cooperation in the different areas relevant to the blue economy, fostering initiatives and projects and preparing for the launch of the UfM Forum on Blue Economy. The meeting was held just prior… read more
