Founded 2008 Location Hamburg, Germany | Type Non-profit
NGO Members 100+ | |
Field Economic development cooperation Key people Dr. Abdelmajid Layadi (Secretary General), Mrs Sailer-Schuster (President) | ||
The Euro-Mediterranean Association for Cooperation and Development e.V. (EMA) is a German nonprofit organization that works in the field of development cooperation between Europe, especially Germany, and the countries of the Mediterranean and the Middle East. It is based in Hamburg, with branches in Berlin, Bavaria and North Rhine-Westphalia. The association's aim is to further economic development cooperation and political, cultural and academic exchange between Germany and the countries of Northern African, the Middle East and the Gulf (EMA region).
Contents
History
Following an initiative by a number of politicians and businessmen in Hamburg, the EMA was founded in 2008 with an eye on the Barcelona Process. Since 2014, Former German President Christian Wulff is the EMA's president, and Abdelmajid Layadi has been the association's secretary general. Prince Hassan bin Talal, Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan, was named Honorary President in January 2012.
Aims
The EMA is politically and religiously neutral. The association aims to create business contacts and supports German companies entering markets or expanding their activities to the region. An important factor however is the enhancement of mutual cultural understanding as a foundation for any long-term partnerships or engagements. The objective is to create cooperation projects which further sustainable development in the region. To further these aims, the EMA regularly organizes a number of events in Germany and the MENA region which are normally hosted in cooperation with other institutions and under the patronage of high-ranking officials, i.e. Ministers. Further services include a tenders database, country profiles and other information about the countries of the region, which are offered on the association's homepage.
Activities
Events organized by the EMA include forums about different topics - such as water, the environment or logistics - or which deal with a specific country. In 2011 for example, the Forum for the Maghreb in Berlin united representatives of all Maghreb countries in Germany at the same event for the first time. Furthermore, the association hosts seminars, debates, intercultural training sessions Euro-Med Forums and the Hamburg Cultural Dialogue. Members of the leading EMA-members also take part in discussions about topics related to the region.
Publications
The EMA regularly published it magazine "Mediterranes" that deals with recent developments in relevant industrial sectors such as water, environmental engineering, logistics or trade, or analyzes politics and diplomady in the region. A wide variety of authors from fields such as science, business and politics is included to maximize readership.
Since 2012, an additional publication has been added for the association's non-German members. A newsletter named "Ouissal" supplies information about past and future projects as well as relevant EMA activities.
Members
The EMA has more about 120 members, both individuals and businesses, making it one of the biggest country-specific associations in Hamburg. The majority of the businesses are small and medium enterprises from sectors such as waste and water management, finance, and investment as well as logistics and infrastructure. Moreover, the EMA has a number of cooperation agreements with institutions in the EMA region and Germany, such as the Chamber of Commerce of Annaba (Algeria), the Chamber of Commerce of Casablanca (Morocco) as well as the Union des Jeunes Euro-Maghrébins (UJEM).