Ariola Ziraj

Union for the Mediterranean

The Union for the Mediterranean (UfM) is the intergovernmental Euro-Mediterranean organisation that brings together all 27 countries of the European Union and 16 countries from the Southern and Eastern Mediterranean. The UfM provides a forum to enhance regional cooperation and dialogue, as well as the implementation of concrete projects and initiatives with tangible impact on the citizens, with an emphasis on young people, in order to address the three strategic objectives of the region: stability, human development and integration. The Secretariat of the Union for the Mediterranean is the platform to operationalise decisions taken by the Member States, implementing strategic regional projects through a specific methodology based on dynamic multi-partner networks and the exchange of best practices and innovative tools: more than 50 regional projects labelled by the Member States worth over €5 billion, mainly in the areas of inclusive growth, youth employability, women empowerment, student mobility, sustainable urban development and climate action.