In a report published on Friday 12 September, the Union for the Mediterranean (UfM) concluded that economic integration in the Euro-Mediterranean region was lagging behind, despite the potential for sustainable growth and development.
The report, published in collaboration with the OECD, explains that while trade flows between UfM countries accounted for 30% of all global exports in 2022, the Euro-Mediterranean market remained highly fragmented. “By 2023, the resurgence in intra-UfM trade was evident, with UfM countries trading nearly twice as much with each other as they did with the rest of the world, totalling over USD 4.4 trillion”, the document states.
Regional integration remains below potential due to persistent difficulties in moving goods, services, capital, people and technology. In addition, conflicts in Ukraine and the Middle East are disrupting supply chains, energy security and prices.
According to the report, the green transition offers new opportunities, as do improved infrastructure connectivity and changing patterns of human mobility. “By modernising trade agreements, developing capital markets and investing in connectivity and green energy, countries from the Union for the Mediterranean can unlock stronger growth and prosperity”, according to OECD Secretary General Mathias Cormann.
With intra-UfM migration increasing by 6% between 2021 and 2024, the report notes a growing recognition of the need to better manage migration patterns.
See the report: https://aeur.eu/f/ig6 (Original version in French by Camille-Cerise Gessant)