Highlights

The Center for Mediterranean Integration (CMI) held its twelfth annual meeting in a fully virtual format due to COVID-19 restrictions. This, however, did not prevent the success of the reunion with an online attendance of high-level representatives from all members and partner organizations. The meeting, chaired by the World Bank's Strategy and Operations’ Director for the MENA region, Stefan Koeberle, went through the evolution and scaling-up of the CMI’s scope of work and influence throughout the last decade: from knowledge sharing to knowledge creation, and from dialogues with civil society to investment project incubation and support.

Mr. Koeberle also emphasized the importance of the CMI in bringing various Mediterranean stakeholders together, not only to discuss but also to formulate policies and implement concrete actions that are beneficial to the Mediterranean region.

Today, the CMI is the only Mediterranean regional initiative gathering international development institutions, governments, local authorities, and civil society.

The CMI joins the broader UN family: A World Bank spin-off

Eleven years after its creation, the Center for Mediterranean Integration spins-off from the World Bank and sails through under the UN umbrella.

Mr. Koeberle seized the Annual Meeting opportunity to announce that, as of July 2021, the CMI will officially join the UN under a hosting agreement for Operational and Service support.

In terms of governance, after 11 years of World Bank chairmanship, the presidency will rotate every three years among the member countries of the Center, starting on July 2021 with the Kingdom of Morocco.

The World Bank Group will remain a founding member. At the strategic level, the WBG will continue contributing to the center’s main orientations. On the operational side, the WBG will maintain the solid technical partnerships that have been built over the years.

The CMI gains more autonomy. By operating under the UN umbrella, it will pursue its mission as a regional initiative to implement SDG17, and also contribute to the other SDGs, in connection with inclusive growth, climate change resilience, and human capital.

Collaboration: An Imperative for Post COVID-19 Recovery and for Enhancing Mediterranean Integration

In times of crises, such as the one we’re facing with COVID-19, collaboration between countries, institutions, and civil society at both local and regional levels is more important than ever. With partnership at the core of CMI’s mandate, the annual meeting focused on showcasing results and achievements undertaken in 2021-2021 in collaboration with a multitude of partners. The meeting was also an opportunity to hear directly from such partners on the added value of concerted and joint action (more in Annual Report – or in videos).

The Center continued expanding its network with Spain and UN-Habitat as the latest members and Femise Network, the Mediterranean Citizen’s Assembly Foundation, Métropole Nice-Côte D’azur, the Growth Dialogue, and CIHEAM as official partners, following years of cooperation on specific projects.

CMI Scientific Council: A Step Towards Technical Excellence

CMI Annual Meeting was also marked by the investiture of the “Scientific Council”, a group of 12 renowned Mediterranean academics and experts in various areas relevant to the CMI’s work. It will provide quality control and scientific advice on specific thematic issues, and assist in liaising with academics, think-tanks, and research centers.

Resources

CMI 2021 Results: A Year in Review

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CMI Annual Meeting Agenda