 A meeting organised by the Euromed Non-Governmental Platform took place in Casablanca, Morocco, on the 4-5 July, with the purpose of discussing the new European Commission proposal entitled "Barcelona Process: Union for the Mediterranean" ahead of its official launch at the summit of heads of state on 13 July in Paris. The meeting also aimed to prepare the structure of the Euromed Civil Forum 2008 to be held in Marseille from 31 October to 2 November.
The main features of the proposed union are the strengthening of the partnership approach, with a co-governance of the presidency, and the creation of a secretariat which would be in charge of the programming and implementation of the regional projects, of which the majority are concerned with infrastructure. At the launch of the "Union for the Mediterranean" in Paris, French President Nicolas Sarkozy urged the 43 participating nations to unite to tackle problems stemming from climate change, growing migration and diminishing water and energy resources. The main challenges identified by civil society are related to the problem of peace in the region, the lack of language on human rights and the problem of financing. The financing question is of particular concern since the European Commission has only committed 50 million euros so far. Another concern is the role of the future secretariat when it comes to choosing the projects and its status as an autonomous body. The meeting further debated the role of civil society in this new Euromed context and came up with a list of recommendations which were presented to the heads of state on 13 July. The recommendations emphasised that all projects should be implemented in accordance with the principles of human rights, and rejected the economic approach in favour of a more diverse approach focusing also on education, culture and sustainable development. They also urged for the issue of migration to be central, and emphasised the key role that civil society should play in this partnership. Sources: |
