The Role of the Private Sector and Civil Society in Strengthening Economic Cooperation within the Pact for the Mediterranean

Key points

The EESC:

• believes the Pact for the Mediterranean can succeed only through a genuine, equal partnership between the EU, its Member States, and southern Mediterranean partners, with visible benefits for ordinary people and communities;
• says organised civil society must be involved in a permanent and structured way, not just through occasional consultations, including trade unions, employers’ groups, and civil society organisations;
• believes that in order to strengthen the private sector, especially MSMEs, the region needs reforms that improve access to finance, simplify procedures, and support digitalisation and connectivity so firms can join regional value chains;
• is of the view that existing EU trade agreements with many southern Mediterranean countries are outdated and should be modernised, with civil society helping monitor labour, environmental, and human-rights commitments;
• believes trade and investment should be tied to sustainable development and decent work, including fair wages, safe working conditions, enforceable standards, and investment in sustainable regional projects;
• stresses that the transition from the informal to the formal economy should follow ILO Recommendation No 204, meaning it should be gradual, inclusive, and economically realistic rather than punitive;
• believes the Pact’s Action Plan should guarantee social protection, labour rights, and compliance with ILO core conventions, while ensuring that Global Gateway and other major projects involve social partners and civil society from the start;
• calls for special attention to be given to social economy actors, women, and young people, through funding, capacity-building, legal support, entrepreneurship programmes, and participation in governance, while labour mobility must respect human rights and avoid brain drain;
• believes coordination among EU-funded and international financial institutions should be strengthened to improve impact, and creating a regional development bank or similar financial mechanism could help fund infrastructure, MSMEs, start-ups, and social economy projects with transparent civil society involvement.