Brussels, 20/01/2016 (Agence Europe) - On Monday 18 and Tuesday 19 January in Nicosia (Cyprus), the Euro-Mediterranean Regional and Local Assembly (ARLEM), co-chaired by the EU's Committee of the Regions (CoR), met up for its annual session. It reaffirmed the driving force it can play in the Mediterranean for creating balanced development that puts more emphasis on the territorial dimension of support policies introduced in this connection.
This joint institution brings together local EU representatives with those from the southern rim of the Mediterranean. It asserted that “Practical cooperation at a local level is essential if the countries from the Mediterranean rim want to manage the challenges created by the conflicts in Syria and Libya, migration and climate change”.
Markku Markkula, CoR president and copresident of ARLEM, stated: “Sources of tension and instability in the Mediterranean region require sustained and very concrete cooperation”. His fellow co-president, Hani Abdelmasih, the mayor of Beit Sahour in Palestine, said “Our cities need to go beyond our current cooperation… The new European neighbourhood policy should place more importance on the local authorities”. On Monday, this conviction was reiterated by the Council of Ministers of the EU, which called on the regional authorities to make a joint contribution with the Libyan municipalities, towards the reconstruction of the country.
During the session, ARLEM adopted two reports: one on “employment and territorial development in the Mediterranean” and the other, on an “agenda for sustainable development in the Mediterranean”. (Original version in French by Fathi B'Chir)