On Tuesday 21 May, Johannes Hahn, European Commissioner for Neighbourhood Policy, urged measures to be implemented in the southern Mediterranean countries to improve their economic situation and combat youth unemployment.
The economic growth of these countries is slow, with trade and investment flows in many countries that have not yet reached their pre-2011 levels and some of these countries are, in some cases, affected by conflict, according to the Commissioner. Youth unemployment averages 30% in this region, and reaches 50% for young women.
While the EU has designated economic development at the heart of its relations with the South, "the key to stabilisation" according to Mr Hahn, "the EU cannot compensate for missed opportunities in the region", he warned at the very first ‘EU MED means business’ in Brussels.
Thus, while the EU is the main economic partner of the partner countries in the field of trade and investment in the southern neighbourhood, "the Mediterranean is the least economically integrated region of the world", he lamented, estimating that this lack of integration cost 1 to 2% of GDP growth in the region. Imports and exports between southern countries represent about 5% of the trade balance of each southern country. "It is in no one's interest for this to continue", Hahn argued.
He called for the development of free trade, saying that the imposition of tariffs was not "the right way to go". Regional trade agreements have little impact and some, such as the Arab Maghreb Union, do not work.
The Commissioner considered the investment climate another "missed opportunity". "Investors like to go where they are sure that rule of law is secure, where rights are respected – including the rights of their employees - and where corruption is the exception not the norm", he explained. He also recalled that the banking and regulatory environment in some countries of the region did not foster a vibrant entrepreneurial culture.
"It is essential to create the conditions for individual entrepreneurs to do business. That means the right legal framework and the necessary respect for rule of law – but also the right conditions for small operators to turn ideas into jobs. SMEs are an engine for job creation, if they are allowed to get on with it", said the Commissioner, who also pointed out that the region needs jobs in the private sector, not in the public sector. (Original version in French by Camille-Cerise Gessant)