The Algiers declaration for the Blue Economy

Ministers of the Western Mediterranean countries, together with the European Commission and the Union for the Mediterranean, adopted, on Tuesday 4 December 2018, during a ministerial meeting in Algiers,  a declaration for the development of a sustainable maritime economy (Blue Economy) in the western Mediterranean and to strengthen regional cooperation on the WestMed initiative.

WestMed, the initiative launched in Naples in 2017, involves 10 countries inside and outside the EU (Algeria, France, Italy, Libya, Malta, Mauritania, Morocco, Portugal, Spain and Tunisia) and promotes the economy in the western Mediterranean to generate growth, create jobs and provide a better living environment for the Mediterranean populations while preserving the services offered by the Mediterranean ecosystem.

Nasser Kamel, Secretary General of the Union for the Mediterranean, said: “The Mediterranean Sea has enormous potential and a wealth of resources that we need to optimize in a sustainable and collaborative way in order to promote growth, jobs and investment and reducing poverty while safeguarding healthy seas”.

Taha Hammouche, General Director of Fisheries and Aquaculture said that Algeria is involved in 31 projects covering the six priority axes identified by WestMed: creation of poles of maritime activity, conservation of biodiversity and restoration of habitat, sustainable consumption and production, development of sustainable fishing and aquaculture activities, development and mobility of skills, maritime safety and fight against marine pollution.