The Role of the Euro-Mediterranean Relations Facing the Economic Crisis

The global financial crisis is affecting the Mediterranean Countries in seveal ways: a slowdown in global economic growth, a decline in foreign direct investment inflows, a decline of worker remittances. However, their economies continued to show more sustainable growth in the face of rapidly changing external macroeconomic conditions. In this context, the Union for the Mediterranean set up four priorities for the Southern partners: SMEs, high unemployment, increasing environmental strains and inefficient transport infrastructures. This is a high profile initiative, but based on voluntary contributions. For this reason it is hardly difficult to identify the amount of financial resources that will be mobilised and their economic and social impact.