Galileo brings Europe and Mediterranean countries closer together
The Galileo Euro-Med Cooperation Office was opened in Cairo, Egypt, on 27 September, signalling an important step in cooperation between the EU and Mediterranean (MEDA) countries. The MEDA GNSS (global navigation satellite system) was launched on the same occasion. 'I believe this cooperation will allow the MEDA countries to find the place they deserve in the Galileo programme. I expect that our cooperation will build bridges between European and MEDA industrialists in the GNSS market,' said EU Vice-President Loyola de Palacio. The office, created for the benefit of all MEDA partners, will constitute a focal point for the promotion of Galileo and Egnos (European geostationary navigation overlay service) services and applications in the MEDA region, according to the Commission. Its mission will be to implement awareness activities, facilitate interaction between GNSS actors in the region, and assure information exchange with other regions. The GNSS project will provide for training and demonstration activities on satellite radio navigation services in the Mediterranean area, together with the necessary infrastructure development. The project was launched by the European Commission and will be managed by the Galileo Joint Undertaking.