The second online event of the MedaMeeting, the ‘Mediterranean South Countries Meeting’, series was held on April 28 to talk about the impact of the pandemic in key sectors for southern Europe, such as tourism, automobile, textile, agrifood or health, as well as about the recovery plans the different governments from the region are working on.
The ‘Mediterranean South Countries Meeting’ focused on investment opportunities in the Mediterranean European countries, especially in Spain, France, Italy, Greece,Croatia and Malta, and was attended by top-level speakers, both from the public and private sectors.
A large number of online attendees from various backgrounds joined the second MedaMeeting with the aim of exploring new possibilities for trade and investment in the markets of the northern shore of the Mediterranean. In addition, the panelists explained how COVID-19 has been experienced in their own countries; how the pandemic has affected their economies; and what are the ways for recovery undertaken by each country.
After the official opening led by Mr. Ahmed M. El Wakil, President of ASCAME, the first session of the event, under the title ‘Thinking Beyond the Pandemic’, gave voice to unparalleled speakers who shared their knowledge and best practices with the audience.
After an interesting introduction by the moderator, Ms. Caterina Passariello, from the newspaper ‘Imprese del Sud’, Ms. Vesna Trnokop-Tanta (CEO, Sigma BusinessConsulting, Ltd Croatia) talked about the reform process Croatia has been under since it joined the EU back in 2003, as well as the consequences of the 2020 earthquake that, together with the pandemic, have led to the implementation of a national plan for recovery.
Philippe Yvergniaux (International Cooperation Director, Business France) explained the impact of COVID-19 on exports, highlighting the importance of the digital economy, the re-localisation of companies and their new types of services. In the same line, Adrian Said (Non Executive Chairman, Malta Government Investments), said: “We are seeing a general decline in the Mediterranean, mainly because of tourism. A region that needs an important amount of money”. “The economy in Malta is evolving OK in spite of COVID-19 and we offer many financial services associated to this industry”, he added.
The second session began with Marin Orriols (Internationalisation Head Area, Barcelona Chamber of Commerce), who pointed out that Barcelona is a global smart city that can offer a competitive and global economy based on innovation, talent, education, creativity and young enterprises. Ines Obradović (Director of the International Affairs Sector, Croatian Chamber of Economy) said: “Despite the crisis, Croatia achieved to have the half of tourism traffic compared with 2019. However, we are creating all conditions to have a safe and clean environment. Investments in 2020 increased around 5%.
Dimitris Lemonakis (Member of the Administration Council of the Piraeus Chamber of Commerce and Industry) explained that “the Greek drivers for recovery are a net fiscal impulse, an increase in savings and an increase of tourism, thanks also to the increase of the vaccination”. “In 2021 the Greek economy and sales are expected to recover”, he added.
On the other hand, Frédéric Ronal (Vice President in charge of International Activities & Cooperation, Chamber of Commerce and Industry Aix Marseille Provence) stated: “The COVID-19 has not changed the strategy, but only delayed it. Exporting companies have withstood the crisis better. The focus has to be on Africa, south of the Maghreb”. Furthermore, Emanuele Cabras (Chamber of Commerce of Cagliari-IT and OpenMed President) highlighted the reasons to invest in Italy: “a leader in fashion, robotics, design and food, with an extensive network of SMEs, skilled workers and academic institutions ready to cooperate with the private sector”. He also gave some important data about the Next Generation EU programme in Italy: 191,5 billion euros, the 2nd largest investment in Italy after the 2nd World War.
In addition to the unique interventions of the speakers, networking opportunities for participants from all over the world were also offered at the B2B Speed Presentation session held after the webinar, where they could briefly present their companies and do some networking.