As part of the implementation of the WestMED Initiative, we invite project beneficiaries to share insights and experiences through this short survey.

Project beneficiairies are those organizations, institutions, or groups that receive or have received direct support or funding for projects in the Western Mediterranean through funding under EU programmes such as EMFAF, Horizon Europe, INTERREG and others.

Your input is essential to assess the coverage, availability, and ongoing relevance of EU-funded programmes and to improve their design and implementation.

By contributing, you will help us identify lessons learned and shape future sustainable blue economy initiatives in the Mediterranean, ensuring they meet the needs of diverse stakeholders—including participants from both EU and non-EU countries.

About the Survey

• Duration: It will take less than 15 minutes to complete.
• Confidentiality: All responses will be handled in strict compliance with data protection regulations and used only in aggregated and anonymous form.
• Scope: You may base your answers on your experience with one or multiple EU-funded projects.

The questionnaire is structured around 6 Sections:

1. Introduction
2. Access to funding
3. Project results and impact
4. Networks and consortium building
5. Understanding the barriers in cross-national and sea basin cooperation
6. Follow-up and continuation of projects.

The survey will remain open from the end of November until mid-January 2026.

On behalf of the European Climate, Infrastructure and Environment Executive Agency (CINEA), thank you for your time and valuable contribution.

EU Sea Basin Assistance Mechanism gathers experts from 15 countries to discuss maritime regional cooperation in Europe’s Atlantic facade, the Western Mediterranean and the Black Sea

On 25 September 2025, alongside the Macro-Regional and Sea Basins Strategies Days, a dedicated networking event was held in Brussels for the National Hubs of the Sea Basin Strategies’ Assistance Mechanism. The gathering served as a platform for meaningful dialogue, strategic reflection, and future-oriented discussions aimed at advancing the EU’s Sea Basin Strategies and the Ocean Pact.

The session began with presentations on two key EU policy initiatives: the newly introduced European Ocean Pact and the upcoming budget framework for the blue economy.

• The Ocean Pact outlines the EU’s comprehensive vision for ocean governance, consolidating various ocean-related policies under one strategic umbrella. It focuses on six core objectives: safeguarding ocean health, promoting a sustainable and competitive blue economy, empowering coastal and island communities, enhancing maritime security, expanding ocean literacy and research, and strengthening global ocean diplomacy.
• The proposed 2028–2034 EU budget aims to offer greater flexibility to Member States and increase support for sustainable fisheries, aquaculture, and maritime sectors. It also prioritizes investment in ocean monitoring, innovation, blue economy initiatives, and international marine governance.

Engaging with National Hubs

National Hubs play a central role in implementing sea basin strategies at the national level. They collaborate closely with the European Commission, national authorities, implementing bodies, and regional stakeholders. During the event, representatives from the National Hubs, Sea Basin coordinators, the Assistance Mechanism team, DG MARE, and CINEA shared perspectives on enhancing future cooperation. The open format encouraged candid discussions on current challenges, opportunities, and reaffirmed a collective commitment to the EU’s maritime vision.

Celebrating Success: Photo Exhibition

On the Macro-Regional and Sea Basins Strategies Days, a photo exhibition showcased impactful projects supported by the Sea Basins Assistance Mechanism. The exhibition featured projects from across the Atlantic, Black Sea and WestMED, such as:

• Aquawind (Atlantic) – a pioneering project combining offshore renewable energy with finfish aquaculture, offering innovative solutions for sustainable food and energy production.
• Black Sea CONNECT (Black Sea) – focused on boosting research collaboration and launching the Black Sea Young Ambassadors Programme.
• 2B-BLUE (WestMED) – aimed at strengthening the blue biotechnology sector through demonstration sites, public–private partnerships, and knowledge exchange.

These examples illustrate how the Sea Basins Assistance Mechanism is driving innovation, fostering cross-border collaboration, and promoting knowledge-sharing across Europe’s maritime regions. From renewable energy in ports to youth engagement and blue biotech, the showcased projects reflect the Ocean Pact’s goals in action—protecting marine ecosystems, empowering coastal communities, and building a resilient blue economy.

The networking event reaffirmed the essential role of National Hubs in delivering the EU’s Sea Basins Strategies and underscored the importance of ongoing dialogue and cooperation to achieve shared maritime objectives.

On 9 June 2025, the Heads of State and Government and high representatives of Croatia, Cyprus, Greece, Italy, Libya, Malta, Morocco, Portugal, Tunisia and the EU on the invitation of the President of the French Republic, gathered at the summit “For a More Connected Mediterranean”, on the sidelines of the third United Nations Ocean Conference.

The meeting also brought together representatives of international organisations, development banks and large companies.

In view of common challenges in the Mediterranean, the Heads of State and Government decided to strengthen their cooperation and work towards shared and sustainable prosperity through a greater maritime, land and digital connectivity between Europe, the Mediterranean and the Gulf.

The Mediterranean Sea accounts for 25% of global maritime traffic and is at the heart of commercial, energy and digital exchanges. In this intense traffic area, States have raised the level of protection of the sea through regulation of transport in the Gulf of Lion a well as the creation of a low-sulphur emission zone, known as SECA zone, which encompasses the entire Mediterranean Sea. The latter was established on 1 May 2025 following the approval of the International Maritime Organisation.

The European Commission recalled that, as part of the Global Gateway strategy in the Middle East and North Africa, the European Union’s support reached €5.9 billion, which is expected to mobilise up to €27.2 billion in private and public investments. Commissioner Šuica also presented the objectives of the upcoming New Pact for the Mediterranean, which aims to strengthen partnerships between the European Union and the countries in the Mediterranean region, based on mutual interests.

Extensive bilateral and regional partnerships were announced for the development of new land and sea connections, the decarbonisation of ports and the deployment of new submarine cables. The participants discussed common objectives to ensure:

1) Decarbonisation of the maritime sector and major Mediterranean ports.

As part of a joint statement, the Mediterranean ports of Algesiras, Beirut and Marseille, announced the creation of a working group contributing to the reduction of shipping’s greenhouse gas emissions by providing ships with onshore power connections in ports while developing infrastructure for supply of alternative fuels and fostering rail or river onward transport towards the hinterland, as well as studying opportunities for new green corridors in the Mediterranean. All Mediterranean ports will be welcome to join the coalition before the COP24 of the Barcelona Convention (Cairo, December 2025). Croatia also announced the launch of its new Rijeka Gateway, green and fully automated, within the port of Rijeka, the most important Croatian port situated on three EU corridors.

2) Strengthening of maritime and land routes for transport of goods and green energy.

France and the European Commission, within the framework of the Global Gateway strategy and the New Pact for the Mediterranean, reiterated their support for the implementation of the India Middle East Europe Corridor (IMEC), including the mobilisation of Global Gateway funding to launch feasibilitystudies for this corridor. France reiterated its support for Egypt’s accession to IMEC, which aims to strengthen connectivity between East and West.

On 30 May 2025, France organised the first IMEC Sherpa meeting since the signature of the Memorandum of Understanding in September 2023. During this meeting, the participants reaffirmed their strong support for the project, as well as the need to consolidate IMEC’s governance while mobilising companies in the strategic sectors concerned. This same group has been invited by the European Commission to meet again, on the sidelines of the Global Gateway Forum to be held in Brussels on 9 and 10 October.

On energy connectivity between Europe and the Gulf, ACWA Power reaffirmed its commitment to convene a private-sector working group alongside leading European energy companies (including partners from France, Germany, Italy and Greece) to explore and develop joint projects in green hydrogen, renewable energy exports and related infrastructure, such as electrical interconnections. This collaborative framework will pave the way for clearer energy flows and the necessary investments under the IMEC corridor.

The Commission also stated the importance of advancing clean energy connectivity with North Africa, notably through the emerging T-MED Initiative, which supports renewable energy investment and infrastructure development across the Mediterranean.

In the Eastern Mediterranean, Greece and Cyprus recalled the implementation of large renewable energy interconnection projects, such as the “GREGY” project, a 950-kilometre submarine cable with a capacity of 3 GW which aims to interconnect Egypt and Greece, or the “Great Sea Interconnector” (GSI), bridging Europe and Middle East with clean energy.

3) Increased digital connections between the Mediterranean and the Gulf.

The participants presented EU’s flagship “Medusa/GEANT” Submarine Cable System initiative, which will not only link the two shores of the Mediterranean, but also Southern Mediterranean countries among themselves, by manufacturing and deploying a submarine cable system based on the most recent technological advancements in fibre optics communications, fully based on European leading-edge technology. It will also contribute addressing the digital divide with partner countries. The network is led by the company AFR-IX telecom, with the support of the Orange Group and the European Union, while Alcatel Submarine Networks (ASN) and Elettra Tlc are responsible for its deployment.

Other major initiatives are already currently contributing to the digital influence of the region, such as the Aqaba Digital Hub, which was inaugurated in 2023 and is one of the largest technological centres in the Near East.

Source: https://www.elysee.fr/en/emmanuel-macron/2025/06/09/joint-press-release-summit-for-a-more-connected-mediterranean