Leveraging regional momentum ahead of the UfM ministerial on employment and labour
- Ahead of the 2025 UfM Ministerial on Employment and Labour, representatives of the UfM Member States convened in Porto to take stock of milestone in the implementation of the 2022 Marrakech Declaration, to discuss the key findings of the UfM Community of Practice on Monitoring, and to exchange best practices on Youth Employment ahead of the coming Ministerial.
- The UfM Region faces several employment-related challenges in the aftermath of major socio-economic and geopolitical disruptions, but several initiatives and best practices from the region can inform our collective efforts going forward. The Declaration of the upcoming Ministerial envisages for October 2025 in Malta was discussed by the participants.
Porto, 5-7 May 2025. The national focal points from 25 UfM Member States gathered over two successive days in Porto, Portugal, for the 18th UfM Regional Platform on Employment and Labour, co-chaired by the European Commission (Directorate General for Employment, Social Affairs and Inclusion – DG EMPL) and the Jordanian Ministry of Labour on behalf of the UfM Co-Presidency.
The meeting of the Platform was the last ahead of the upcoming UfM Ministerial on Employment and Labour which will take place in October in La Valetta, Malta. As such, it served the threefold purpose of taking stock of the implementation of the 2022 Marrakech Ministerial Declaration, discussing the draft Ministerial Declaration for the Malta Ministerial, and learn about the current efforts underway in Portugal to promote job creation and tackle employment-related challenges.
The participants were introduced to the role of the Public Employment Service – IEFP- in promoting employment and vocational training in Portugal and were informed about the priorities of the Polish EU Council Presidency. A dedicated sessions addressed youth employment in the region, with a focus on the UfM Community of Practice on Youth Employment in the Southern Mediterranean, which yielded a charter that will be presented to the UfM Ministers in Malta, and which will enter a new phase under the title “UfM Community of Practice Supporting Transition from Education to Employment Readiness” (STEER) building on the success of the former Community. Study visits to learn about the Portuguese employment ecosystem saw the participants visiting Cesae digital – Centre for the Development of Digital Skills and MODATEX – Vocational Training Centre for the Textile, Clothing, Apparel and Wool Industry.
The meeting of the Regional Platform was preceded the day before (5 May) by the meeting of the UfM Community of Practice on Monitoring, bringing together 13 volunteering UfM Member States in addition to observers to discuss the draft cross-country report and the Online Tracking Tool being developed to store and visualize information and trends, both thematically and geographically. These will be presented at the coming Ministerial.
Twice a year, the UfM Regional Platform on Employment and Labour brings together representatives from employment and labour ministries and agencies of the UfM Member States as well as representatives from European institutions/agencies and international organisations to discuss the current realities and follow up on the implementation of relevant Ministerial declarations, as well as preparing for future UfM Ministerials on Employment and Labour.
