27 November 2019, Barcelona. On the occasion of the 2019 MedNC Annual Conference, held at the UfM’s Headquarters in Barcelona (Spain), the UfM signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the Institut européen de coopération et de développement (IECD), promoter of the UfM-labelled regional project Mediterranean New Chance (MedNC), and the consortium led by The WonderPick Limited. Following a previous agreement signed on 17 October 2019, the purpose of this MoU is to facilitate collaboration by and among the UfM Secretariat, IECD and The Consortium for the financing and implementation of the MedNC project. In line with this, the Consortium,… read more
26 November 2019, Brussels. Around 70 participants hailing from the national Civil Protection Units from the UfM Member States convened in Brussels for a Technical Working Group on “Preparing for efficient mutual assistance in the Euro-Mediterranean Area” under the framework of the UfM and jointly organised by the European Commission. The discussions during the meeting focused on the following three areas: host nation support, preparedness for response, risk assessment and situational analysis to support rapid response in case of natural and man-made disasters. The purpose of this working group served to facilitate the identification of priorities for an action plan for efficient… read more
Turin, 25 November 2019. The Secretariat of the Union for the Mediterranean and the European Training Foundation have joined efforts to co-organize the UfM Workshop on the Future of Work and Skills for the Future in partnership with the Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) GmbH commissioned by the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ), with a focus on three key thematics, namely Entrepreneurial Skills, Digital Skills and Green Skills. The Workshop brought together over 50 stakeholders and active actors from regional and international organizations, business support organizations, the private Sector, the civil society, development cooperation and… read more
Country representatives in charge of Research and Innovation took stock of the progress achieved since the Valletta Ministerial Declaration (May 2017) Barcelona, 25 November 2019. The 24th meeting of the EU-Med Group of Senior Officials (EU-Med GSO) in Research and Innovation took place at the headquarters of the Union for the Mediterranean (UfM) in Barcelona on 25 November 2019 in presence of UfM country representatives and partners of EU-funded projects with a focus on the Mediterranean. The meeting was co-chaired by Maria Cristina Russo, Director for International Cooperation at the Directorate-General for Research and Innovation of the European Commission and… read more
19-21 November 2019. The UfM Women Business Forum 2019 took place in Barcelona on 19-21 November within the margins of the Smart City Expo World Congress. It convened women entrepreneurs, national women business organizations, international leading organizations and business support schemes from the Euro-Mediterranean region to share knowledge and ideas on various business opportunities, good practices and innovative and successful business models. This year’s forum focused on promoting the role of women in the circular economy and in tech and innovation. During the roundtable on Women in the Circular Economy, challenges and opportunities for women in the Euro-Mediterranean region were discussed and different business models were presented. Circular economy models are complex and require the mobilization and… read more
Barcelona, 19 November 2019. UfM Secretary General, Nasser Kamel, was received on Tuesday 19 November 2019 by Ada Colau, Mayor of Barcelona, host city of the UfM Secretariat. During their first meeting since her re-election last April, SG Kamel took the opportunity to commend Mayor Colau on her ambitious programmes for the city, reiterating the importance of cities and local governments in pushing forward inclusive and sustainable development agendas, localizing the Sustainable Development Goals. Kamel further highlighted the UfM Secretariat readiness to further enhance its action at local level, notably to address more effectively the climate emergency faced across the… read more
The Union for the Mediterranean hosted the annual coordination meeting of regional organisations on 13 November 2019, and called for increased synergies to tackle the pressing challenges faced in the Euro-Mediterranean region, notably the climate emergency which disproportionately affects the area. Barcelona, 13 November 2019. The Union for the Mediterranean is an active member of the coordination group of intergovernmental organisations operating across the Euro-Mediterranean region. It hosted on Wednesday 13 November its 2019 Annual Meeting, with the aim of guaranteeing the complementarity of their work and the pursue of their mutual objectives with better results and greater impacts. Representatives… read more
The Creative Forum Ljubljana is organised by the Slovenian Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Union for the Mediterranean (UfM) as a unique platform that links the Southern Mediterranean and the Western Balkans through creativity Creative industries hold great potential for the Euro-Mediterranean countries seeking to diversify their economies and participate in one of the most dynamic sectors of world commerce The recommendations and the takeaways from this landmark Forum will feed directly into the UfM roadmap activities and Slovenia’s Positive Agenda for Youth 14 November 2019, Ljubljana. The Creative Forum Ljubljana, organised by the Slovenian Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Union for the Mediterranean,… read more
1 November 2019, Tirana. The National Workshop under the UfM Financial Strategy for Water took place in Tirana focusing on the sustainable financing of water resources management. The meeting highlighted significant financing need and the opportunities to increase operational efficiency and value-for-money of investments. The workshop took into account that the process of EU accession is the strongest driver for reform and investments and helped Albanian authorities to improve alignment of national goals and strategies with regional (UfM) strategies as well as the SDGs and showcase the analytical work carried out in the drinking water supply and sanitation (WSS) sub-sector. The… read more
The UfM Secretary General, Nasser Kamel, participated in the XV Conference of the Mediterranean Commission of the European League for Economic Cooperation (ELEC) under the title “Promoting Blue Tourism in the Mediterranean”, which took place in Palma de Mallorca (Spain) on 30-31 October 2019. Palma de Mallorca, 30-31 October 2019. The Conference on “Promoting Blue Tourism in the Mediterranean” brought together over 80 stakeholders from the Tourism and Blue Economy Sectors on both sides of the Euro-Mediterranean Region, presenting an occasion for exchanging views, ideas, best practices and success stories in the field. The discussions focused on the role of… read more
