|
Press Release - Cairo, 4-6 June 2003.
The Greek Presidency gave Euro-Mediterranean Co-operation in Research, Technological Development and Innovation
a new boost, through the organisation of the 9th Monitoring Committee meeting, on 4-6 June 2003, in Cairo.
The meeting was organised by the Greek General Secretariat for Research and Technology, in co-operation with the
European Commission and the Ministry of Higher Education and Scientific Research of Egypt.
During the meeting, the need for reinforced co-operation in Research, Technological Development and Innovation
between EU countries and those of the SE Mediterranean was confirmed, while a short and medium term Action Plan
was adopted. The main fields of co-operation concern the sectors of Communication Systems, Water Resources, Health,
Innovation, Cultural Heritage, Agriculture and Energy (including Renewable Resources).
One of the main points of the Action Plan concerns the development of a solid and consistent system of Research,
Technological Development and Innovation in the Mediterranean countries. Increasing the
specialised human resources,
establishing the appropriate structures and ensuring links and stability constitute the basic three-fold aim of activities
in this direction. Therefore, the best possible use of the 6th Framework Programme for the mobility of researchers from and
to the Mediterranean countries is suggested, as well as the evaluation of the RTD systems of the region (a practice already
successfully implemented in Morocco and Jordan), the use of common indicators, the identification of best practices and the
development of a regional network of national contact points for a more effective communication and dissemination of information.
Moreover, the bilateral co-operation between Mediterranean partners and EU countries should be activated and fully exploited.
|
|
As a tangible example of an important achievement on the Euro-Mediterranean co-operation in RTD the EUMEDCONNECT project was
presented, carried out under the MEDA/EUMEDIS Programme for the electronic networking of research organisations of the
Mediterranean countries. The project was presented by Professor Vasilis Maglaris (GRNET, Greece) and the partners from
Algeria (Aouaouche El-Mouhab, CERIST), Turkey (Turgul Yilmaz, ULAKBIM) and UK (David West, DANTE).
The meeting gave also the opportunity for further bilateral contacts between the head representatives of Greece and Egypt,
including the Greek Ambassador in Cairo, Dimosthenis Konstantinou, during which the interest of both parties for an
Agreement on Scientific and Technological Co-operation was renewed.
The comments regarding the organisation and the results of the meeting were particularly good, while the conclusions reveal
great prospects for further common projects and actions in the Mediterranean region.
|
