This article was first published by ENI CBC Med Programme on 20 April 2020.

The Joint Monitoring Committee, decision-making body of the ENI CBC Med Programme, has approved 22 projects under the call for strategic projects out of the 198 proposals submitted. The projects, worth €78.8 million, have the ambition to produce long-lasting and far-reaching effects, fostering significant change in key thematic fields through synergies with the main EU, national and regional policies in the Mediterranean region.

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Start-ups development, reinforcement of Euro-Mediterranean economic clusters, technology transfer, employability of young people and women, waste management and energy efficiency: these are the topic s of the 22 projects approved under the strategic call for proposals. It is worth mentioning that the thematic distribution of the projects is related to the different budget available under each Priority.

With an investment of €69 million in EU funding and a total budget worth €78.8 million, these projects gather 197 actors from the eligible territories of the 13 countries participating in the ENI CBC Med Programme, i.e. Cyprus, Egypt, France, Greece, Israel, Italy, Jordan, Lebanon, Malta, Portugal, Palestine, Spain and Tunisia. The distribution of lead beneficiaries and partners by country is shown in the graphs below. 

The ambition of strategic projects

Compared to standard projects, strategic projects have increased means – the financial contribution per project ranges from €2.5 to €3.5 million and partnerships are composed of a minimum of 4 different eligible countries, including at least 2 EU Mediterranean Countries and 2 Mediterranean Partner Countries – to achieve ambitious goals.  Notably, strategic projects are expected to produce a far-reaching, long-lasting impact in key sectors of cooperation in the Mediterranean, achieve tangible and replicable results that last beyond the funding of the Programme, and contribute to the development of public policies.

The 22 approved strategic projects add up to the 41 running standard projects: the Programme has now a pool of 63 projects, involving over 450 organizations from both sides of the Mediterranean, worth over €188 million (€169 million EU contribution). The final aim of the Programme is to ensure long-lasting cooperation in the Mediterranean in order to make the region more competitive, innovative, inclusive and sustainable.

Next steps

All applicants involved in the second step of the call for proposals will receive a letter of the Managing Authority containing the results of the evaluation. Selected beneficiaries will soon start the process towards the signing of the grant contract with the Managing Authority, allowing starting the implementation of the planned activities.

• RESULTS: call for strategic projects
• Management decision n. 65 of 17.04.2020 (in Italian)

Source: UfM newsletter  

• More than 100 experts and representatives from international organisations participated in the UfM online consultation on the future of the Blue Economy in the Mediterranean region.
• Taking into account the aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic, they provided more than 350 recommendations in key sectors such as governance, fisheries, aquaculture, tourism, renewable energies, marine litter, blue jobs and safety and surveillance.
• Their inputs will help to prepare the upcoming meeting of the UfM ministers in charge of Blue Economy, foreseen in 2020.

The Mediterranean is in an alarming situation, warming 20% ​​faster than the world average, according to the first-ever scientific report on the impact of climate and environmental change in the Mediterranean (note: link removed/ page inactive), developed by MedECC with the UfM support. It is estimated that about 15 mega port cities are at risk of flooding, unless further adaptation is undertaken. Maritime transport is one of the most important blue economy sectors in the Mediterranean, both in terms of growth and employment. Yet, it accounts for 10% of marine pollution and 3% of air-polluting emissions. On top of that, about 8 million tons of plastic waste enters the ocean every year and one-time use plastics are making a massive come-back during this COVID-19 crisis. To face all these challenges, the UfM, with its co-presidency, conducted a virtual consultation through the participative platform, Med Blue Economy Platform, during March 2020.

The consultation was structured around priority themes identified with the UfM Member States, ranging from maritime governance, sustainable food, tourism, maritime transport to adaptation to climate change, blue skills development and employment. Around 100 entities – including research centres and universities, public administrations, private sector, international organisations and non-governmental organisations – submitted over 350 substantial feedbacks entries, as part of the preparation process of the 2^nd UfM Ministerial Meeting on Blue Economy, foreseen in 2020.

Read the conclusions >>

This article was published by Biodiversity Protection Community in October 2019.

Now available in several languages

In the framework of the Project PANACeA, the Mediterranean Biodiversity Protection Community built the present Catalogue of tools for biodiversity protection in marine protected areas, covering different needs and requirements for using ecosystem-based approaches in managing and protecting biodiversity.

This Catalogue targets marine protected area managers and includes a handful of the tools for ecosystem-based management in the Mediterranean developed by the Biodiversity Protection Community projects up to 2019. The report is available in EN, AR and FR.

In 2020 the KICs will be establishing a group of experts on water scarcity in Southern Europe, delivering focused entrepreneur challenge labs for start-ups and organising the EIT Water Academy for water scarcity challenge education. The KICs will also be running EIT workshops with public bodies and other stakeholders across different regions and communication activities to reach out to citizens and interested stakeholders, engaging in external events and with the media to raise awareness about water scarcity for citizens.

More info here