The first steering committee meetings for the newly launched EU-funded SAFEMED V Project was held on 23 November 2022 in hybrid mode. The Beneficiary countries Algeria, Egypt, Israel, Jordan, Lebanon, Libya, Morocco, Palestine, Tunisia, representatives from DG NEAR, DG ENV, DG MARE, DG MOVE as well as observers from the Union For the Mediterranean (UFM), REMPEC,  the MEDMOU Secretariat, participated in the event.

The European Commission’s Directorates informed the audience about the latest policy developments and the initiatives in the Region with emphasis on the adoption of the Emission Control Area for the Mediterranean Sea that shall happen at MEPC 79.

All Beneficiary Countries expressed their appreciation to EMSA and the Contracting Authority DG NEAR for the continuous support in the areas of maritime safety, security and marine environment protection and highlighted the importance of the Project in building up their national capacities, thus fostering the appropriate implementation of the international instruments.

The SAFEMED V 2022 - 2023 Action plan was discussed and endorsed by the Steering Committee members from the beneficiaries’ side. The actions proposed both in a regional and bilateral perspective build upon the achievements under the previous SAFEMED Project and are the result of a series of coordination meetings with all beneficiaries following a bottom-up approach.