In a context marked by the lasting and significant effects of the COVID-19 pandemic, the 16 new projects approved under the 3rd and last call of ENI CBC Med Programme (for its 2014-2020 period) focus on the capitalization of ongoing or already funded initiatives to make results and knowledge available in the Mediterranean region. The ambition is to foster the enhancement and/or design of evidenced-based public policies - especially at local level - by using and further developing a set of good practices which efficiency has been proven.

A contribution to the recovery of the Mediterranean region

Capitalization projects eventually aim to contribute to mitigating the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on Mediterranean citizens and territories by increasing their capacity to recover and be more resilient. Project acronyms such as RESET, REST@RTS or RESTART MED! sum up quite well the spirit in which these 16 new ENI CBC Med initiatives are being implemented.

These projects come to respond to the main challenges that are affecting Mediterranean people, and which have been exacerbated with the pandemic. Water, food, energy, more sustainable cities are among the covered topics by MEDWAYCAP, WEF-CAP, CARISMED and Sustainable MED Cities projects.

A key issue like the climate change is turned into a business opportunity under in EMPHASIS project and using what the nature offers as an ally in MedBEESnessHubs focusing on how bees can help some communities run their business while preserving the biodiversity. Marine litter and preserving coastal and marine ecosystems are also tackled in Plastic Busters CAP and ENSERES.
 
Building the ‘project of projects’

With an investment of €15.1 million in EU funding and a total budget worth €16.8 million, these projects gather 116 actors from the eligible territories of 11 countries participating in the ENI CBC Med Programme, i.e., Cyprus, Egypt, France, Greece, Italy, Jordan, Lebanon, Malta, Palestine, Spain and Tunisia.

Capitalisation projects will transfer and exploit the results of ongoing or previous experiences from different funding programmes and initiatives (ENPI/ENI CBC Med Programme, Union for the Mediterranean, Interreg MED Programme, PRIMA – Partnership for Research and Innovation in the Mediterranean Area, WestMED Initiative, the regional and bilateral components of the European Neighbourhood Policy). They will also reinforce existing Euro-Mediterranean networks in specific sectors (i.e., blue, green and circular economy) while seeking to reach and engage public authorities and policy-makers to have an effective impact on citizens. 

To this end, the financial contribution per project ranges from €500.000 to €1 million and partnerships are composed of a minimum of 5 different eligible countries, including at least 1 EU Mediterranean Country and 1 Mediterranean Partner Country.

Discover the 16 capitalization projects by consulting their websites

• CARISMED - CApitalisation for Re-setting Innovation and Sustainability in MED-Cities
• CLUSTER - advanCing youth and women sociaL inlUSion in The mEditerRanean
• CLUSTER4GREEN - Promoting innovative clusters and value chain of SMEs for sustainable development
• EMPHASIS - Euro-Mediterranean Network Facilitating Market Uptake of Innovations from SMEs
• ENSERES - ENhancing Socio-Ecological RESilience in Mediterranean coastal areas 
• MEDBEESnessHubs - Mediterranean Bee Hubs in support for sustainable economic prosperity in deprived rural areas
• MedRiSSE - Replicable Innovations of SSE in the provision of services and creation of decent jobs in the post covid-19 crisis recovery
• Med4Waste - Mediterranean Dialogue for Waste Management Governance
• MEDWAYCAP - The MEDiterranean pathWAY for innovation CAPitalisation toward an urban-rural integrated development of non-conventional water resources
• Plastic Busters CAP - Fostering knowledge transfer to tackle marine litter in the Med by integrating EbA into ICZM
• RESET - RESults Enabling Transitions: mapping, synthesising and mainstreaming sustainable, green and circular business support achievements in the MED region, for replication and policy-making
• ReSt@rts - Reinforcing Med Microfinance Network System for Start-ups
• RESTART MED! - REvitalization of Sustainable Tourism Across Regions in The MEDiterranean
• SEACAP 4 SDG - Med SE(A)CAP integration through uniform adapted assessment and financing methods, mainly targeting buildings in education and health sectors, for sustainable development goals in a smart society
• Sustainable MED Cities - Integrated tools and methodologies for sustainable Mediterranean cities
• WEF – CAP - The Technology Transfer and Capitalization of Water Energy Food NEXUS