News

Today, Ministers of Foreign Affairs of the Union for the Mediterranean (UfM) gathered in Barcelona for the 7h UfM Regional Forum, held in the framework of the Day of the Mediterranean. Foreign Affairs Ministers unanimously endorsed a declaration on the accession of North Macedonia to the Union for the Mediterranean. Young people coming from civil society organizations from across the Euro-Mediterranean region, presented their expectations and recommendations to the Foreign Affairs Ministers with a view to developing concrete solutions for a more inclusive, sustainable and prosperous Mediterranean. Ministers approved the launch of the regional initiative “Mediterranean Capitals of Culture”. Two… read more

6-20 November 2022, Sharm El-Sheik. For the first time in the Conference of the Parties’ (COP) history, the 27th edition hosted a Mediterranean Pavilion. The initiative was conceived by the UfM to highlight both the urgent challenges the Mediterranean is currently facing, and the innovative solutions already being developed, raising awareness of a region overlooked in the climate negotiations. Located in the COP27 Blue zone, the Mediterranean Pavilion hosted more than 60 events and working meetings, and provided an exceptional opportunity for the region to talk and act as one, bridging the voices of public and private, scientific and academic, technical, policymaking, civil society, finance, and business actors. In an innovative… read more

Sharm El-Sheikh (Egypt), 7 November 2022. The Event “Boosting Energy Efficient Buildings in the Mediterranean Region”, held at the Mediterranean Pavillion in the framework of the 27th Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (COP27), spotlighted the need to boost action through national commitments and international cooperation.  Experts and representatives of national governments and the European Commission showcased their collective efforts towards an energy-efficient, decarbonized and climate resilient built-environment in the Mediterranean Region. The event was a unique opportunity to highlight the commitment of the European Commission to support energy-efficiency in the Mediterranean Region, as… read more

The UfM Trade and Investment Forum 2022 is the Forum’s fourth edition in four successive years, attesting to the emphasis that the UfM places on trade facilitation and investment promotion as pre-requisites of economic development and integration in the region. The Forum comes at a time when economic, political and humanitarian global disruptions are posing serious challenges that call for an orchestrated regional response that is innovative, sustainable and inclusive. Istanbul, 4 November 2022. Regional trade integration and investment promotion have always been priority areas of action for the Secretariat of the Union for the Mediterranean and are at the… read more

 The Union for the Mediterranean and the Higher Council for Science and Technology organised a “UfM Forum on Green Innovation and Careers for Empowering the Mediterranean Youth: Triple Helix in Action” With 70 registered participants, the two days event saw the participation of Ministries of Research and Labour, Higher Education and Research institutes and initiatives, business and university networks, development funds and experts in innovation and employability. Amman, 30-31 October 2022. With 45% of the population under the age of 25, the Mediterranean is a young region whose potential needs to be fully exploited for achieving a double green and… read more

The Ministers in charge of gender equality from the 42 countries of the Union for the Mediterranean (UfM) endorsed today in Madrid a Ministerial Declaration to accelerate the strengthening of women’s role in the Euro-Mediterranean region. The Ministers agreed to enhance legal frameworks, improve women’s access to leadership in public life and decision-making, raise women´s participation in economic life and combat and prevent violence against women and girls. The regional High-Level Conference on Women for the Mediterranean, held every two years, will kick-off this afternoon in Madrid. It will gather over 100 high-level representatives and international experts to discuss operational… read more

EU-UfM High Level Conference on strengthening water finance and investment policies under climate change takes place in Cairo (Egypt) as a prelude to COP-27. The EU and the Union for the Mediterranean are committed to supporting UfM countries in developing and strengthening their water investment and finance policies. There is a need to act on exploring, advancing and implementing the means of leveraging finances, developing and transferring technology and building capacities on national and regional levels. Cairo, 17 October 2022 – As water is the sector most heavily hit by climate change in the Mediterranean region, governments need to address some… read more

19 September 2022 – The UfM Water Task Forces, Water Access, Sanitation & Hygiene (WASH), and Water Climate Change Actions (WCCA), took place during the IME’s Regional Symposium “Our Mediterranean: water challenges and regional priorities for 2050” on 19-20 September 2022 under a hybrid format from Valencia, Spain. Bringing together country representatives and regional stakeholders of the UfM region. Both meetings came as a result of the continuous endeavours of the UfM towards its Member states to help them bringing about decisive actions to meet their environmental challenges and tackle climate change in the Mediterranean. Moreover, they came following the UfM member states ‘request… read more

13 October 2022, Dead Sea – Jordan. For their third meeting of 2022, UfM Senior Officials convened at the Dead Sea in Jordan, which holds the Co-Presidency of the organisation since 2012. Ayman Safadi, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs and Expatriates of the Hashemite Kingdom greeted the UfM member states’ representatives and shared with them his views on the evolution of Euro-Mediterranean challenges and relations in the past decade, and the role the UfM can and must have in this framework. “The Union for the Mediterranean is one of the few fora that gives Euro-Mediterranean countries the… read more

Barcelona, 27-29 September 2022. In the framework of a cooperation agreement, the annual meetings between Sweden’s government agency for development cooperation, Sida, and the UfMS were held in Barcelona from the 27th to the 29th of September at the UfM Secretariat premises in Barcelona. The meeting served to present the UfM mission and the UfM Secretariat work methodology, give an overview on the main achievements of the Sida – UfM Secretariat Partnership and discuss the new features of the extended cooperation agreement. The cooperation agreement renewed in December 2021 for the period 2022-2025 is moving from an operating grant to a programmatic… read more