The Catalan Minister for Foreign Action and European Union, Meritxell Serret i Aleu, closed the fifth edition of MedCat Days at the Palau de Pedralbes, and called upon the new European institutions that emerged from the ballot boxes on 9 June to prioritise the Mediterranean perspective in the various policies of the European Union: “We need to continue working to make the Mediterranean a priority everywhere and, therefore, to make it a priority in European policies and in the new mandate that the European Union is beginning,” said Serret.

In her speech, the Minister also referred to the Mediterranean macroregion project, a strategic objective for the Government of Catalonia: “the macroregion is by no means an easy challenge, but it is essential.” For the minister, the macro-regional project is the initiative that should enable greater cohesion and cooperation, as well as more fluid governance between the territories and actors of the Mediterranean, in order to respond to growing shared challenges. “We want the Mediterranean to be an open, living space,” she stressed.

“We have many common challenges. The climate emergency is one of the areas that we must work on together to achieve greater resilience in our societies,” said the minister.

In the face of the multiple crises in the Mediterranean, Serret stressed the importance of joining alliances at Mediterranean and European level: “We need to work in the Mediterranean at all levels.At regional and local government level, with civil society, in multilateral spaces and within the framework of the European Union”, and added that the government is working to “build a more cohesive Mediterranean, but above all one that moves towards improving the quality of life of its citizens”.

Finally, the Head of Foreign Action thanked the various actors working in the Mediterranean, such as the Conference of Peripheral Maritime Regions (CPMR) and MedCities. “We want to network to strengthen relationships, alliances. We are grateful for all the work done by the European networks, the programmes, businesses and civil society organisations that contribute to creating synergies,” she concluded.

Also speaking at the close were Senén Florensa, Executive President of the European Institute of the Mediterranean (IEMed), and Manuel Szapiro, Director of the Representative Office of the European Commission in Barcelona. MedCat Days were organised by the Catalan Government and IEMed with the collaboration of the MedCoopAlliance platform.