Southern Neighbourhood
Transport Cooperation between the EU and its Mediterranean Partners
TRANSPORT PRESS PACK
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Transport Cooperation between the EU and its Mediterranean Partners
EU & Southern Neighbourhood
T R A N S P o R T P R E S S PAC K
November 2013
Euromed Ministerial Conference on Transport A Partnership priority
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A Regional Transport Action Plan (RTAP)
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A panorama of regional transport projects
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Transport: a UfM priority
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The EIB: facilitating transport
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2013 Bridges in the Mediterranean Also available also in Arabic.
This publication exists only in electronic format. It has been prepared by the European Neighbourhood Info Centre, a project funded by the EU. It does not represent the official view of the EC or the EU Institutions. The EC accepts no responsibility or liability whatsoever with regard to its content.
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T R A N S P o R T P R E S S PAC K Moving in the same direction
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Euromed Ministerial Conference on Transport Ministers in charge of Transport from the 43 countries of the Union for the Mediterranean gather in Brussels on 14 November 2013 for the Second EuroMed Ministerial Conference on Transport, and the first under the umbrella of the Union for the Mediterranean. During the First Euro-Mediterranean Ministerial Conference on Transport, held in Marrakech in 2005, ten years after the launch of the Euro-Mediterranean Partnership (Euro-Med), also known as the Barcelona process, Ministers called for the intensification of cooperation with and within the Mediterranean region in the field of transport. In order to achieve this, a five-year Regional Transport Action Plan (RTAP) for the period 2007-2013 was produced. The objective of this second conference will be to follow up the progress made from the first Conference in Marrakech in December 2005. In this context, an evaluation report for the Regional Transport Action Plan (RTAP) for the Mediterranean 2007-2013 as well as the priority guidelines for the RTAP 2014-2020 for the Mediterranean region will be presented at the Conference. These guidelines will contribute to the definition of the multimodal Trans-Mediterranean Transport Network, a strategic action in which the Secretariat of the Union for the Mediterranean will play an important role as technical body of the EuroMed Forum.
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“Creating a Trans-Mediterranean Transport Network is a shared objective for the European Union and our neighbours, and one which we have been supporting with important resources over the past years.”
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Štefan Füle European Commissioner for Enlargement and Neighbourhood Policy, at the launching conference of UfM LOGISMED-TA project on 17 June, 2013.
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Browse key quotes on transport issues by top EU officials, projects and beneficiaries on the ground.
PHOTO GALLERIES Images from across the Neighbourhood highlighting EU cooperation projects which assist partner countries in modernizing their transport networks. High-resolution pictures available for download here.
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T R A N S P o R T P R E S S PAC K 1
A Partnership priority The establishment of an integrated, eďŹƒcient, safe and secure transport system in the Mediterranean has been a key priority in the relationship between the European Union and its Southern Partners since relations were established back in 1995, in Barcelona. Both the EU and the Mediterranean Partner Countries consider transport cooperation as a key factor for development and stability, essential to regional economic integration, especially in view of the aim for a Euro-Mediterranean Free Trade Area, leading also to increased trade and growth. In July 2011, the European Commission adopted a Communication entitled The EU and its neighbouring regions: A renewed approach to transport cooperation. This Communication provides a renewed policy framework for promoting transport infrastructure and market development in the countries covered by the European Neighbourhood Policy and enlargement. In October 2011, EU transport ministers adopted conclusions on neighbourhood transport cooperation in which they emphasised the key role of improved transport connections in achieving deeper economic integration and closer political association with neighbouring regions.
2 "Our experience in developing transport corridors and making sure that high transport safety, security and social standards are applied, can be shared with our partner countries. Better connections benefit passengers and operators both in the EU and our partner countries."
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Siim Kallas, European Commissioner responsible for Mobility and Transport 28-02-2012 - Eastern Partnership Transport Ministerial Meeting
Find out more – Transport cooperation with the EU Neighbourhood
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T R A N S P o R T P R E S S PAC K A Regional Transport Action Plan 1 In a bid to intensify transport cooperation between the EU and its Southern Partners, but also between the Mediterranean Partner Countries themselves, the 2005 Euro-Mediterranean Ministerial Conference of Marrakech commissioned a Regional Transport Action Plan (RTAP) for the Mediterranean for the period 2007-2013.
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Adopted in 2007, the RTAP stresses that a safe and efficient integrated transport system is vital for the development of trade in the area and, more generally, for economic integration in the Mediterranean Basin. It seeks to identify and prioritise short and medium-term actions in institutional reform and transport networks. The RTAP concentrates on the development of infrastructures, especially at regional level, and contributes to the establishment of an integrated, efficient, safe and secure transport system in the Mediterranean. It backs the work of the EuroMed Transport Forum and its working groups dealing with Infrastructure and Regulatory Issues, as well as other relevant sectors, namely aviation, the Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS), maritime affairs, ports and short sea shipping and the sub-groups on Road and Rail Regulatory Issues, Motorways of the Seas and Maritime Safety.
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Towards a Euro-Mediterranean Common Aviation AreaThe EU has signed Aviation Agreements with Morocco, Israel, and Jordan. A similar agreement is being negotiated with Lebanon, and negotiations are expected to start soon with Tunisia. The European Commission also has a mandate to negotiate a similar agreement with Algeria. These agreements will replace bilateral air services agreements between EU Member States and partner countries and will be a further step in creating a wider Common Aviation Area between the EU and its neighbours by 2015, which is a key objective of the EU's enhanced external aviation policy agreed in 2012.
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A panorama of regional transport projects EuropeAid’s Regional Programme funds a number of projects that support actions related to the Regional Transport Action Plan. These are:
interconnection with the European infrastructure at an equivalent level of safety. Fiche – http://enpi-info.eu/mainmed.php?id=525&id_type=10
EuroMed Aviation II: promotes the emergence of a Common EuroMediterranean Aviation Area and facilitates future negotiations of comprehensive Euro-Mediterranean Aviation Agreements. It seeks to reinforce air transport cooperation and improve aviation safety and security in the beneficiary countries. Fiche – http://enpiinfo.eu/mainmed.php?id=510&id_type=10
EuroMed Road, Rail and Urban Transport regional programme: Contributes to the improvement of the efficiency, environmental mpact and safety of road, rail and urban transport in the Southern Mediterranean partner countries by providing support to reforms in the road transport industry and substantial support to the management of urban transport systems in the partner countries, and to improve efficient fleet management. Fiche – http://enpi-info.eu/mainmed.php?id=514&id_type=10
Mediterranean Motorways of the Seas (MEDAMoS): promotes the creation of better maritime transport connections in the Mediterranean through support to ministries, port authorities, customs and relevant private sector stakeholders. It focuses on the selection and design of a number of Maritime Motorways to link the (non-EU) Eastern and Southern Mediterranean Transport Systems and the European TEN-T, and develops innovative partnerships between public and private stakeholders. Fiche – http://enpi-info.eu/mainmed.php?id=41&id_type=10
Road Safety programme: Contributes to the reduction of road crash death and injury in the Mediterranean partner countries by helping partner countries develop stronger road safety planning and management, a coordinated multisector and multi-disciplinary cooperation on road safety and sustainable mobility, as well as a transnational regional network on road safety with shared vision for road safety. Fiche – http://enpi-info.eu/mainmed.php?id=517&id_type=10
SAFEMED IΙI – Maritime Safety and Pollution Prevention: promotes cooperation in maritime safety and security and prevention of pollution from ships by providing technical advice and support. It seeks to achieve improved capacity of maritime administrations, reduced maritime pollution caused by ships, better information and sharing of data regarding vessel movements, a reduction in human error as a contributing factor in maritime accidents, and better secured port facilities and vessels. Fiche - http://enpi-info.eu/mainmed.php?id=549&id_type=10
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SUCCESS STORIES Roads of hope A new vision for cargo freight EuroMed Transport Project: The road to growth
GNSS II – Euromed Satellite Navigation: undertakes actions towards the operational introduction of sustainable Global Navigational Satellite System (GNSS) services in the Euro-Mediterranean region. It seeks to develop a suitable institutional, regulatory and service framework for the application of GNSS services in aviation and maritime transport, achieving
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Building the Motorways of the Sea
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Transport: a UfM priority The need for transport cooperation and the objective of a Free Trade Area has been reconfirmed in the framework of the Union for the Mediterranean, launched in Paris in 2008 in a bid to give a new impulse to the Barcelona Process. Transport is one of the six UfM priority fields. The Secretariat of the Union for the Mediterranean supports projects aimed at the construction of motorways, the modernisation of railway systems and the development of logistic platforms and motorways of the sea in the region. Particular attention is devoted to cooperation in the areas of maritime transport and urban development.
1 “Transport… [is a] key sector where the UfM works that gets the two shores of the Mediterranean closer”
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UfM Secretary General Fathallah Sijilmassi
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In June 2013, The UfM Secretariat launched a new project that aims to boost development in the Southern Mediterranean countries by facilitating transport and strengthening trade flows in the region. The LOGISMED Training Activities (LOGISMED-TA) project seeks to reinforce the Mediterranean logistics sector, leading to the creation of five new logistics platforms in the region. The project is promoted by the European Investment Bank (EIB) and funded by the European Commission (€3 million) and the Deauville Partnership Transition Fund (€3.4 million).
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The UfM Secretariat has also adopted two projects in the area of Transport for labelling by the 43 Member States: - The Jordanian Railway Network project foresees the setting-up of a ‘North-South corridor, from the Syrian Border to the Port of Aqaba (509km), connecting the capital Amman, the surrounding logistics centres, and the nation’s gateway port of Aqaba. Links to neighbouring countries are foreseen for later stages. - The “Central Section of Trans-Maghreb Motorway Axis”project aims at completing the missing links of the central section of the Trans-Maghreb Motorway Axis, connecting the Algerian, Moroccan and Tunisian national motorway networks. The project will provide a continuous motorway corridor from Agadir (Morocco) to Ras Jedir (Tunisian-Libyan border). The sections are to be completed by the construction of a dual-carriage motorway with at least two lanes running parallel to the Maghreb coast from Oujda (Morocco) – Algerian border (22km), and Bou Salem (Tunisia) – Algerian border (80km).
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The EIB: facilitating transport The European Investment Bank (EIB) is the Mediterranean region’s main financial partner, with more than €10 billion invested between October 2002 and December 2009. Since October 2002, the European Investment Bank (EIB)’s operations in the Mediterranean partner countries have been brought together under the Facility for Euro-Mediterranean Investment and Partnership (FEMIP).
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In October 2008, the EIB was asked by Euro-Mediterranean finance ministers to support three of the six priority initiatives of the UfM, namely cleaning up the Mediterranean Sea, the Mediterranean Solar Plan and land and sea motorways.
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Since 2002, the Bank has provided €3 billion for road, maritime, urban and rail transport in the region. In 2012, four Transport projects were financed:
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- Egypt: Extending Cairo’s Metro Network - Metro Line 3 (Phase 3) (€200 Million) - Lebanon: Improving interurban roads - Lebanese Highways II (€75 Million) - Morocco: Improving rural roads - Routes Rurales IV (€100 Million) - Morocco: Enhancing interregional integration - Autoroute El Jadida-Safi (€240 Million)
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Useful links EuropeAid Infrastructure & Transport http://ec.europa.eu/europeaid/what/infrastructure-transport/index_en.htm
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EC Vice President and Commissioner responsible for Transport http://ec.europa.eu/commission_2010-2014/kallas/index_en.htm
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DG Transport International Relations http://ec.europa.eu/transport/international/index_en.htm
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Euromed Transport
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http://www.euromedtransport.org UfM – Transport and Urban Development
EU Neighbourhood Handbooks From the EU Neighbourhood Info Centre website, a number of different handbooks can be downloaded, offering tips to media professionals for improved coverage of EU cooperation activities, but also providing information on how to access EU funding or to navigate through EU jargon. A wealth of knowledge at your disposal, just a click away on www.enpi-info.eu.
http://ufmsecretariat.org/transport-urban-development/ EU Neighbourhood Info Centre Transport resources Transport thematic portal http://www.enpi-info.eu/thememed.php?subject=8 List of Regional Projects funded http://www.enpi-info.eu/list_projects_med.php?subject=8
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Quotes Pool http://www.enpi-info.eu/list_type_med.php?id_type=11&newstype=0&country=0&subject= 8&eupolicy=0&Submit=Submit Feature stories http://www.enpi-info.eu/list_type_med.php?id_type=6&subject=8 Photo galleries http://www.enpi-info.eu/list_galleries_med.php?subject=8 Publications http://www.enpi-info.eu/list_type_med.php?id_type=9&subject=8 Videos http://www.enpi-info.eu/list_videos_med.php?subject=8
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EU Documents and Publications Communication from the commission to the council and the European parliament: The EU and its neighbouring regions: a renewed approach to transport cooperation (July 2011)
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http://ec.europa.eu/transport/themes/international/regional_cooperation/doc/com_2011_0415_communication.pdf Council conclusions on transport cooperation with the EU's neighbouring regions (October 2011)
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http://ec.europa.eu/transport/themes/international/regional_cooperation/doc/2012-council-conclusions-6-oct-2011.pdf Regional Transport Action Plan (RTAP) for the Mediterranean
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http://www.euromedtransport.eu/image.php?id=77
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Communication on the development of a Euro-Mediterranean transport network http://eurlex.europa.eu/LexUriServ/LexUriServ.do?uri=COM:2003:0376:FIN:EN:PDF Communication Enhancing Euro-Mediterranean cooperation on transport and energy
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http://eur-lex.europa.eu/LexUriServ/LexUriServ.do?uri=COM:2001:0126:FIN:EN:PDF Communication Developing the trans-European transport network: Innovative funding solutions http://eur-lex.europa.eu/LexUriServ/LexUriServ.do?uri=CELEX:52003DC0132:EN:HTML First Euro-Mediterranean Ministerial Conference on Transport http://ec.europa.eu/transport/themes/international/regional_cooperation/euromed_en.htm
EU Neighbourhood Library Our online database Action plans Agreements Country reports Declarations Resolutions Strategy documents
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T R A N S P o R T P R E S S PAC K The EU is a major donor for the Neighbourhood. The lion’s share of its regional support is channelled through the EuropeAid Co-operation Office and the European Neighbourhood and Partnership Instrument (ENPI). Approximately 10 percent of the ENPI funds are allocated to regional programmes and projects. ENPI funding approved for the period 2007-2013 was €11.2 billion. The proposed amount for the ENPI – to be renamed European Neighbourhood Instrument (ENI) - in 2014-2020 is €18.2 billion. East: Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Georgia, Moldova, Ukraine and Russia. South: Algeria, Egypt, Israel, Jordan, Lebanon, Libya, Morocco, Palestine, Syria, Tunisia.
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European Commission http://ec.europa.eu/europeaid Directorate General Development and Cooperation – EuropeAid
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