Brussels, 08/11/2010 (Agence Europe) - The economic or social committees or similar organisations of EU countries and of Mediterranean rim countries are to meet for their annual session from 10 to 12 November, in Rome. Several themes are on the agenda of debates between over 150 representatives of civil society (employers' organisations, employees and their associations) expected to attend the gathering, including a joint assessment of cooperation established between civil societies in the region. Stock will also be taken of setting up the Union for the Mediterranean (UfM). Participants will, moreover, discuss sustainable development (especially water management), agricultural policy, vocational training and the establishment of a more equitable society in the Euromed region, with emphasis being placed on strengthening the role played by women and those suffering from disabilities.
In particular, attention will be paid to transforming these non-institutionalised meetings into a permanent assembly. The initiative comes from the European Economic and Social Committee (EESC) and social and economic councils of EU member states. According to the proposal, the assembly should have the status of a consultative body within the UfM after the fashion of that being advocated by the Euromed Parliamentary Assembly and that set up by the Committee of the Regions, and the Euro-Mediterranean Regional and Local Assembly (ARLEM). (F.B./transl.jl)