The second Ministerial Meeting on Water of the Union for the Mediterranean will take place on Monday 28 September at the Foreign Ministry, starting at 4.00 pm. The initiative, organised under the co-chairmanship of Jordan and the European Commission, with Italy as the host country, brings together the relevant Ministers from the 43 Member States of the Union for the Mediterranean, an intergovernmental organisation established in 2008 to promote cooperation and dialogue between the two shores of the Mediterranean in key sectors such as the environment, energy, education and development.
The meeting will be opened by the Minister for Foreign Affairs, Antonio Tajani; the Minister for Water and Irrigation of the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan, Raed Abu Soud; the European Commissioner for the Environment, Water Resilience and a Competitive Circular Economy, Jessika Roswall; and the Secretary-General of the Union for the Mediterranean, Fadi Hajali. The Minister for the Environment and Energy Security, Pichetto Fratin, will deliver the closing address.
The Ministerial Meeting will take place immediately prior to the first Euro-Mediterranean Water Forum, scheduled in Rome from Tuesday 29 September to 2 October. The two events are designed to complement one another: the political and strategic dialogue of the Ministerial Meeting will be followed by the Forum’s multilateral and multi-stakeholder format, aimed at turning the guidelines agreed by governments into operational initiatives, partnerships and concrete projects.
The decision to host the events in Rome is part of Italy’s strategy in the field of sustainable water resource management, which is deemed essential for economic and social development. Italy also wishes to prioritise regional cooperation, capable of fostering shared interests and strengthening dialogue between countries facing common challenges such as water scarcity, climate change and growing pressure on natural resources.
