2024-05-01 07:32:16
Speaking at the opening of the 17th session of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Union for the Mediterranean (PA-UfM), these deputies affirmed that the renewal of this commitment inevitably involves the promotion of collective action to address the challenges facing the region.
In this regard, the president of the Congress of Deputies of the Kingdom of Spain and vice-president of the AP-UfM, Francina Armengol, indicated that these challenges relate in particular to the establishment of peace in the Middle East and the management more flexible migration flows in order to improve legal and safe migration that respects human rights.
Ms. Armengol also highlighted the need to address the causes of human flows, including climate change, violence, hatred, scarcity of water and food, and the absence of better life opportunities, saying that the The UfM has now established itself as a crucial institution of great symbolic value which works to promote cooperation and development.
For his part, the Vice-President of the European Parliament and Vice-President of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Union for the Mediterranean (PA-UfM), Marc Angel, noted that “we live in a complex era where many “Many benchmarks of the international order are weakened or called into question, adding that Euro-Mediterranean integration, as an ambitious and necessary tool, is thus put to the test.” According to him, “numerous outbreaks of war and unresolved conflicts threaten to move away the essential and desirable prospect of a true political and economic partnership, uniting the two shores of the Mediterranean.”
“The UfM, our Parliamentary Assembly, but also other regional forums can and must play an important role in promoting peace,” he maintained, noting that “by working closely together with our partners international organizations, we must work to establish a climate conducive to peace and stability in the region.”
On this register, he emphasized the urgency of “regaining impetus to the Euro-Mediterranean integration process”, calling on both shores of the Mediterranean to make more political investment in favor of this process.
For his part, the vice-president of the House of Representatives of Egypt and vice-president of the PA-UfM, Mohamed Abou El Enein, indicated that economic and social challenges and global transformations require greater solidarity and deeper complementarity in areas of common interest, calling in this sense to create a Euro-Mediterranean financial institution which will manage projects, market and finance commercial investment opportunities, notably infrastructure projects, such as successful regional integration in the European Union.
He also called for turning the challenge of climate change into an opportunity to encourage more investment in renewable energy and green hydrogen, and for linking electricity networks and creating a regional electricity market to take advantage of the enormous potential of southern countries in this area, in addition to the expansion of the Euro-Mediterranean partnership towards Africa and the Arab Gulf.
The political director of the general secretariat of the Union for the Mediterranean, Kamal El Mahdaoui, for his part affirmed that the Assembly is meeting in a difficult context due to the crisis in Gaza, explaining that the year 2023 has postponed the he issue of peace and stability at the top of our agenda, since it is necessary not to impact the achievements of the Euro-Mediterranean region.
In this context, he said that the contours of a new Mediterranean “are emerging before our eyes and invite us all to mobilize more to take advantage of the advantages of cooperation and ensure a better future for our Euro-Mediterranean area” , recalling in this sense the urgency of establishing a lasting ceasefire to preserve the lives of innocent people.
The stability and security agenda remains a priority so as not to relegate to the background the multiple expectations of the Mediterranean, he observed, adding that the path to a better Mediterranean “must animate our collective efforts and our common actions to ensure a better future for future generations.
Thus, several key themes were included on the agenda, in particular youth, employment, investment, training, higher education, the climate and energy agenda, the digitalization of the economy, as well as points which show the urgency and relevance of acting within a framework of enhanced cooperation.
2024-05-01 07:32:16