The Secretary General of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Mediterranean, Amb. Sergio Piazzi, has delivered the opening keynote speech at the Euromed PPP & Project Finance Conference, being held in Istanbul, Turkey. The theme of the event is “Mobilising attractive infrastructure investments through PPP reform and project finance solutions”.
The event was attended, among others, by H.E. Mehemet Simsek, Minister of Finance of Turkey, as well as senior representatives of MIGA, EIB, EBRD, UNECE, Tunisia, Germany and the EC, together with some 100 delegates from the public sector, investment banks and industry representatives.
PAM Secretary General highlighted the commitment of the Assembly in supporting the economic process at large, so much so that it was decided to establish the Panel on External Trade and Investments in the Mediterranean as a tangible sign of a stronger effort on economic cooperation and integration in the region.
The Panel, Dr. Piazzi added, acts as a high-level think thank with the purpose of addressing common challenges, identifying obstacles and proposing concrete actions for the promotion and support of trade and investment in the Mediterranean.
“Economic growth is fundamental and critical for its numerous interconnections with other sensitive issues, such as regional stability.
Political stability also increases the capacity of a country to attract foreign investments”, Dr. Piazzi sustained.
The Parliamentary Assembly of the Mediterranean will continue to play its role in the achievement of further democratic processes, and the PAM Panel is one of the tools that the Assembly will develop within its parliamentary diplomacy remit.
To this effect, PAM Secretary General reminded that on 29 June, the Panel will be hosted by the Portuguese Parliament in Lisbon. The parliamentary hearing, the first of its kind on economic issues, is organised in cooperation with the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD), and will focus on sustainable economic growth in the region.
“This Euromed PPP Conference is taking place at a very strategic moment, because the outcome of the debates and contributions by speakers and participants, will provide a strong informed input to our Panel’s event in Portugal”, Amb. Piazzi concluded.