The students of UEMF make the voices of young Africans and Euro-Mediterraneans heard before the Parliamentary Assembly of the Union for the Mediterranean

The Call for Investment in the Future made by the students of Euromed University of Fes, read on 16 February 2024, during the 8th Summit of Presidents of Parliaments and the 17th Session of Parliamentarians of the Union for the Mediterranean

The students of Euromed University of Fes organized on 14 February 2024 at the parliament's headquarters and under the supervision of the Chair Alliance of Civilizations (Chair created in partnership with the United Nations Alliance of Civilizations – United Nations), the first summit of young Africans and Euro-Mediterraneans of Euromed University of Fes, under the theme: Euro-Mediterranean and transatlantic openness, facing together the challenges of tomorrow

This day, attended by more than 200 students representing over thirty countries, addressed important and diverse topics including transatlantic openness, energy ethics, sustainable development, the circular economy, green innovations and transport. Also discussed were environmental issues, territories, the motility and mobility of goods and people, etc., which constitute the cement of co-development across Africa.

The section on major challenges was also central to the speeches and exchanges, notable among them: climate change, the scarcity of resources such as drinking water, pollution, human population growth and the degradation of biodiversity.

Environmental issues are not only varied, but also increasingly complex.

This day concluded with the formulation of the Call for Investment in the Future, which was read this Friday 16 February 2024 during the 8th Summit of Presidents of Parliaments and the 17th Session of Parliamentarians of the Union for the Mediterranean.

Among the main points of this Call:

We, students of Euromed University of Fes, Moroccans, Africans and Europeans, take the opportunity of our participation in the first summit of Euro-Mediterranean and African youth, which took place at the Moroccan House of Representatives on 14 February 2024, to launch this Call concerning the promises of the future for our large Euro-Mediterranean and African region.

We wish first to express our sincere thanks to H.E. Rachid Talbi Alami, President of the House of Representatives of the Kingdom of Morocco, President of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Union for the Mediterranean, for having opened the doors of the House of Representatives to us to debate among ourselves the challenges and issues of our region and to respectfully address this call to you.

Considering that this region is currently undergoing profound changes caused by a shifting geopolitics, various conflicts endangering coexistence, increased intervention by other powers and worrying instability in many countries;

Considering the negative impacts of climate change which contribute to the scarcity of water resources, food insecurity and malnutrition, the increase in poverty, especially on the African continent, and the emergence and/or re-emergence of diseases of all kinds;

Considering that these effects exacerbate social inequalities and widen the gap between Europe and Africa with a tendency for youth to embark on migration and immigration routes that cannot be prevented by any security policy or strategy, except through stability and development of the African continent so that youth can flourish and express their talents within their continent;

Considering the announcements made at the multiple climate forums to compensate developing countries and notably those of the African continent;

Taking into account the importance of the Kingdom of Morocco’s singular and laudable initiatives implemented to work toward economic integration between Europe and Africa around structuring projects capable of ensuring co-development and shared prosperity;

Taking into account Morocco's singular and driving role both in terms of Euro-Mediterranean neighborhood policy;

Recognizing the pioneering role of the Cherifian Kingdom in south-south economic cooperation with Africa through singular and significant investments in sub-Saharan Africa and the sharing of its know-how in several economic and technological sectors as well as Morocco's exceptional policy regarding legislation and policies in favor of African migrants;

Emphasizing its salutary role in training African youth and the tens of thousands of scholarships that Morocco offers to sub-Saharan students, like the scholarships offered by Euromed University of Fes which provide us with a framework of excellence for training and research, cooperation and partnership, concretizing in this area the famous phrase of the late King Hassan II who described Morocco as a tree whose nourishing roots sink deep into the soil of Africa and which breathes thanks to its foliage rustling in the winds of Europe;

We, young students from the north and south of the Mediterranean, launch in unison and with one voice the following call to you honorable parliamentarians and representatives of the peoples and nations of both continents to:

- consolidate and strengthen cooperation and partnership between Europe and Africa through concrete large-scale projects of mutual interest;

- concretely release the funds promised at COP21 in Paris to help African countries implement resilience and climate adaptation projects, knowing that Africa is the continent that emits the least greenhouse gases with less than 4%, but is at the same time the most affected continent;

- provide the necessary support for the strategic gas pipeline project linking Nigeria to Morocco which would have a positive economic impact on the 14 African countries crossed by this gas pipeline and would act as a lever for regional integration, while serving as a source of energy supply for Europe;

We, the young people, particularly those from Africa, welcome the initiative of His Majesty King Mohammed VI to facilitate Sahel countries' access to the Atlantic Ocean; to make available to the Sahel countries Morocco's highway, rail, port and logistics infrastructure for the import and export of goods. We also express our gratitude to the Sovereign, who is the founder and Honorary President of Euromed University of Fes, for having made this University of excellence available to us which allows us to receive the best education while remaining on our continent;

Finally, we young people call on the countries represented by your honorable assembly and the African countries to provide the African continent with a Marshall Plan in terms of investment in education at all levels and in research. It is an investment in the future that will be shaped by us the young and it is an investment whose dividends are by far greater than any other investment and it is also the true bulwark against poverty, radicalization, terrorism and illegal immigration.