The Commission has published the first action plan for the Pact for the Mediterranean
It sets up measures aimed at strengthening cooperation between the EU and the Southern Mediterranean by 2026, including the establishment of a Mediterranean University.
The European Commission has published the first action plan for the implementation of the Pact for the Mediterranean. The document contains 21 specific initiatives based on more than 100 proposals developed through a broad consultation process with member states, academia, young people, civil society, and the private sector. The goal of the Pact for the Mediterranean is to strengthen cooperation between the European Union and partner countries in the Southern Mediterranean and to connect the region in the areas of education, economy, and security.
The three pillars of the action plan: human capital development, economic cooperation, and security
The Action Plan is built on three pillars that link human capital development, economic cooperation, and security. In the area of people, the Commission supports the establishment of the Mediterranean University and the engagement of young people through the Youth Parliamentary Assembly. The economic pillar focuses on the development of renewable energy, clean technologies, and digital connectivity, for example through the T-MED initiative. In the area of security, the Commission is strengthening crisis preparedness, the fight against organised crime, and migration management, including support for legal pathways and the enhancement of border management capacities.
The Mediterranean University as a flagship for academic cooperation
In the field of education, the most significant undertaking of the action plan is the pilot phase of the Mediterranean University initiative. It will build on the experience of European university alliances and relevant existing cooperation initiatives between higher education institutions in the EU and the Southern Mediterranean countries (e.g., the Euro-Mediterranean University (EMUNI) and the Mediterranean Universities Union (UNIMED)). The initiative aims to strengthen the region’s position as a space for joint studies, research, and knowledge sharing, while also fostering closer ties among higher education institutions, research institutions, and other partners.
The pilot phase, with a budget of 11 million euros from the NDICI instrument, will focus on three main areas:
- Establishing the Secretariat of the Mediterranean University, whose role will be to coordinate cooperation among higher education institutions in the region and support the creation of joint educational programs, including building on existing initiatives, to avoid duplication and accelerate their implementation.
- Selecting partner higher education institutions and creating pilot consortia that will jointly develop academic cooperation, with an emphasis on ensuring an accessible environment.
- Creation of the “Study in the Mediterranean” portal, which will consolidate the range of study and mobility opportunities in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region and make them more accessible to students, researchers, and academics.
The Mediterranean University will be built on cooperation between selected higher education institutions from the EU and ten partner countries in the Southern Mediterranean. These institutions will collaborate within consortia and will also participate in broader academic platforms that bring together education, research, culture, arts, and sports.
In the coming years, the Commission will support the creation of joint study programmes leading to the award of joint or multiple degrees. Shorter educational formats in the form of micro-credentials will also be developed, enabling more flexible study options. The preparations also include a study that will propose steps toward the future establishment of a full-fledged Mediterranean University with campuses across the entire region. The initiative will also support exchanges of students, researchers, and academic staff across the region, including intra-regional exchanges within the MENA area. The initiative will be complemented by the Erasmus+ and Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions programmes.
The Action Plan is designed as a flexible tool that the Commission will update regularly based on consultations with partners and developments in the region. We expect the second version of the Action Plan this autumn. It will also include an interactive platform enabling the tracking of individual projects, their breakdown by country and sector, and transparent monitoring of their implementation.
For more information, please read the full text of the Action Plan; you can find more details on the Mediterranean University initiative in the Annex to the Commission’s Implementing Decision on the financing of the multiannual action plan to support the Mediterranean University for the period 2025–2026.