Naxxar, Malta, 22 June 2023 – The Parliamentary Assembly of the Mediterranean (PAM), participated in the WestMed Stakeholder Conference 2023, organized by the WestMED Initiative in Malta, which currently holds the presidency together with Mauritania.
The WestMED initiative is the result of years of dialogue among ten countries of the Western Mediterranean region part of the ‘5+5 Dialogue’: five from the North (France, Italy, Portugal, Spain and Malta), and five Southern partner countries (Algeria, Libya, Mauritania, Morocco and Tunisia).
In May 2012, at the Malta Summit of Heads of State and Government, PAM was entrusted with the mandate of ensuring the parliamentary dimension of the 5+5 West Mediterranean Dialogue.
This year, national representatives of the Initiative gathered in Malta together with senior regional experts and key institutional representatives, including Dr Aaron Farrugia, Minister for Transport of Malta, and Ms Charlina Vitcheva, EU Director General for Maritime Affairs and Fisheries. PAM was represented by Hon. Katya De Giovanni (Malta), Head of the Maltese Delegation to PAM.
The 2023 edition of the Conference focused on “Boosting the Sustainable Blue Economy” and highlighted the Initiative’s activities on Sustainable Aquaculture, Green Shipping, Ports, Maritime Clusters, Maritime Spatial Planning, Sustainable Tourism, and Ocean Literacy.
In her address, Hon. De Giovanni recalled the role of parliamentary regional cooperation in implementing innovative legislative frameworks that are tailored to the regions’ specific needs. Moreover, she emphasized the role of PAM, in coordination with its regional partners, in achieving SDG 14 on Ocean conservation in the regions and its commitment to international negotiations on this crucial issue.
At the end of the meeting, participants adopted a declaration aimed at reinforcing cooperation to meet several important goals, ranging from increasing jobs and skills in the blue economy, sustainability, and the use of technology to improve the blue economy industry.
PAM will remain committed to advancing the achievement of these goals, while fostering its engagement within the 5+5 Dialogue and support its parliamentary dimension.//