Safemed presents regional cooperation results at IMO Assembly

The latest results of the Safemed Project, implemented by the Valletta-based Regional Marine Pollution Emergency Response Centre for the Mediterranean Sea (REMPEC), were recently presented to delegates from the EU and the Mediterranean during the International Maritime Organisation (Imo) assembly in London.

Safemed aims to reduce maritime accidents and pollution through coordinated action, improving access to information, offering training and assistance, and promoting a common platform for best practices to regulate maritime traffic in Mediterranean coastal states.

The project is implemented in Algeria, Egypt, Israel, Jordan, Lebanon, Morocco, the Palestinian Authority, Syria, Tunisia, and Turkey on the basis of a contract signed by IMO and the European Commission.

REMPEC director Frederic Hebert explained how the Mediterranea is a major shipping area with more than 300,000 port calls per year. Over 10,000 ships transit the region every year. In a deeply interlinked Mediterranean environment, damage to one area of the sea impacts every other area, he said.

"Through the presentation, REMPEC informed delegations of the results achieved through the first project known as Safemed I, particularly with regard to the relevant actions of 2007 Regional Transport Action Plan (RTAP) for the Mediterranean, and about the progress made so far on the three-year Safemed II Project launched last January.

"We believe that while RTAP continues to be 'the road map' for Euro-Mediterranean transport co-operation, the Safemed Project provides an excellent example of 'regional co-operation' in the Mediterranean," Mr Hebert said.

The first issue of the Safemed Project quarterly electronic newsletter, The Safemed Beacon, was launched during the IMO Assembly. For more information visit www.rempec.org and www.safemedproject.org.