News

• Women largely contribute to human development and stability in the region. In some countries, they make up as much as 63 percent of university students. However, in the Mediterranean region, they represent only 28% of the labor force, 12% of entrepreneurs and 16% of politics. • The region could increase its GDP per capita by 25%, by enhancing women’s equal participation in public life. • The UfM Secretariat’s actions on women’s empowerment and gender equality target more than 50,000 women in the region…. read more

• The first meetings of the UfM Regional Electricity Market (REM) Platform and the UfM Gas Platform take place in Barcelona. • Representatives from 20 UFM Member States discuss the integration of electricity markets and the development of a gas market in the region…. read more

UfM Secretariat Spokesperson, Sergi Farré, discusses Mediterranean cooperation and integration with local government representatives from Italy, Spain and France during meeting of Arc Latin network. Participants agreed on the need for an enhanced common development agenda for the Mediterranean, developing synergies and closer cooperation amongst the different integration initiatives in the region… read more

• HOMERe stakeholders sign a cooperation charter and adopt action plan for 2016-2017 to improve employability prospects of talented postgraduates through internship mobility experiences in transnational companies in the Mediterranean. • Labelled under the Mediterranean Initiative for Jobs (Med4Jobs), the project will be implemented during this pilot phase in nine Mediterranean countries: Algeria, Egypt, France, Greece, Italy, Lebanon, Spain, Morocco and Tunisia…. read more

HOMERe stakeholders have signed a cooperation charter and adopted an action plan for 2016-2017 to improve the employability prospects of talented postgraduates through internship mobility experiences in transnational companies in the Mediterranean. Labelled under the Mediterranean Initiative for Jobs (Med4Jobs), the project will be implemented during this pilot phase in 9 Mediterranean countries: Algeria, Egypt, France, Greece, Italy, Lebanon, Spain, Morocco and Tunisia…. read more

• The UfM Secretary General was invited to participate at the 3rd Annual Ministerial Meeting of the “Med Group” with the Ministers of Foreign Affairs of Cyprus, Greece, France, Italy, Malta, Portugal and Spain on 25-26 February in Limassol, Cyprus. • Participants in the meeting discussed the need for enhanced regional cooperation and integration efforts in the Mediterranean. Sijilmassi presented the latest updates on UfM activities towards these goals. • The meeting takes place following the UfM Ministerial Conference “Towards a common development agenda for the Mediterranean”, held on 26 November on the occasion of the 20th anniversary of the… read more

• The BlueGreen Med-CS project seeks to promote water and environment cooperation in civil society • The project is based on a capacity building programme that will enable more than 120 civil society organisations (CSOs) to acquire skills in various environmental areas. • With a starting budget of €3.3 million, it will be initially implemented in Albania, Algeria, Lebanon, Morocco and Tunisia during 2015-2017 in partnership with the Horizon 2020 Initiative and the United Nations Development Program…. read more

• At their first meeting of 2016, the Senior Officials of the Member States of the Union for the Mediterranean (UfM) approved four new regional projects in the fields of Inclusive Growth, Sustainable Development and Women’s Empowerment. • The meeting also provided an opportunity for the 43 Member State representatives to highlight the achievements of 2015 with a view to further develop regional cooperation and integration in the Mediterranean within the framework of the UfM…. read more

• On 15 February, the UfM Secretariat organised a meeting in Brussels with the participation of the Government representatives of Palestine, Israel and representatives of both the European Commission and the Office of the Quartet to advance on the implementation of the Desalination Facility project for the Gaza Strip, endorsed by the 43 Member States of the UfM. • The Israeli Delegation confirmed the Government’s political support to the project and its commitment to facilitate the construction of the facility. • The Palestinian Delegation emphasised its readiness to take all necessary measures for the project’s implementation. • The large-scale desalination… read more

Barcelona, 18 February 2016. The Secretariat of the Union for the Mediterranean strongly condemns the terrorist attack ‎perpetrated in Ankara, Turkey. It presents its condolences to the families of the victims and expresses its profound solidarity with the people and the Government of Turkey and with all victims of terrorism. The Secretariat of the Union for the Mediterranean reiterates its firm condemnation of all acts of terrorism, extremism and violence. It reaffirms its unshakeable faith in the values of dialogue and peace and joins the international community in the fight against terrorism and the defense of universal human values…. read more