The European Commission has pledged €1 million to the recently established Blue Mediterranean Partnership.
The pledge came at the Blue Mediterranean Partnership conference on 2nd December. This collaborative initiative is designed to catalyse sustainable blue economy investments in the non-EU countries of the Mediterranean region, focusing on the Southern Neighbourhood. The Union spearheads it for the Mediterranean (UfM) and the EU through the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) and the European Investment Bank (EIB).
The partnership’s priority areas include plastic waste reduction, coastal resilience investments, sustainable tourism, wastewater treatment, circular economy, and marine biodiversity.
The Blue Mediterranean Partnership aims at obtaining new financial resources from sovereign donors, channelled through a new multi-donor fund, administered by EBRD, bringing together:
- - Key implementing partners such as the European Commission and its financial institutions (EBRD and EIB), UfM, Agence Française de Développement (AFD), Kreditanstalt für Wiederaufbau (KfW) and Cassa Depositi e Prestiti (CDP),
- - Beneficiary countries (Egypt, Jordan, and Morocco) and
- - Donors (European Commission, the Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency, AFD).
Its primary objective is to tackle the threats faced by the Mediterranean Sea by coordinating the financing of sustainable blue economy projects located in the Mediterranean and Red Sea region, focusing initially on Egypt, Jordan, and Morocco.
At the pledging conference, donors, including the European Commission, made formal statements and announced their respective pledges, with the European Commission contributing.
In the following months, announcements of additional donations are anticipated from Germany and Spain, with other donors to follow.
More information
Blue Mediterranean Partnership steps up support for sustainable blue economy (ebrd.com)
2nd UfM Ministerial Declaration on Sustainable Blue Economy (2021)
Communication on a new approach to a sustainable blue economy
Renewed partnership with the Southern Neighbourhood - A new agenda for the Mediterranean
Details
- Publication date
- 12 December 2023