EBRD President, H.E. Suma Chakrabarti, welcomed PAM President, Sen. Lhou Lmarbouh, accompanied by Sen. Francesco Amoruso, PAM former President, and Amb. Sergio Piazzi, PAM Secretary General. This meeting was part of the high-level consultations foreseen by the MoU signed between the two institutions in 2013.
The main aim of the London meeting was to review the present situation in the Mediterranean region and identify priority actions aimed at sustaining economic growth and sustainable development initiatives necessary to address the main challenges ahead, such as the spread of violent extremism, the migration flows and the need to sustain the labor market.
Discussions focused on the needs of the Southern Mediterranean region in terms of investments in favor of both States and private sector, as well as the importance of National Parliaments in debating and fostering at the National and Regional levels the legislative frameworks required to support foreign and national investments. The EBRD President welcomed the contribution and support provided by PAM on the ratification process of the agreement with Lebanon, as well as the overview of the needs in Palestine and Libya.
The PAM President expressed his wish for EBRD to address the needs of funding the investments in Sahel as a subregion of immediate vicinity with the Mediterranean Basin. On its side, the PAM Delegation expressed appreciation for the 4 billion Euros so far invested by the EBRD (during the past three years) in the Southern Mediterranean region (Egypt, Jordan, Tunisia and Morocco)mainly in the sector of Energy and Mining.
At a specific request by PAM, with reference to the water crisis in Gaza, the PAM delegation was pleased to learn moreabout the initiative by the EBRD for the establishment of two trust funds to support the Energy, the Water and other priority sectorsfor Gaza and Palestine in general, initiative to which PAM pledged its full support.
On the occasion of this meeting, it was also agreed to consider the organization of a large joint conference, to be held in 2017, for PAM MPs to debate the economic trends of the region and in individual countries, as well as to familiarize them with key requirements relative to legislative and regular frameworks to attract and consolidate foreign investments.
Both President Chakrabarti and President Lmarbouh stressed the unique nature and added value provided by the strategic partnership between PAM and ERBD and committed to further strengthen it with concrete and joint initiatives.
The meeting with President Chakrabarti was preceded by a discussion on country specific priorities/programs and joint actions to be envisaged with Dr. Ricardo Puliti, EBRD Managing Director for Energy, and Mr. Tarek Osman, EBRD Political Advisor.