The PA-UfM is the Parliamentary Assembly of the Union for the Mediterranean (UfM). It provides an opportunity for multilateral cooperation among elected representatives of the EU and its Southern Mediterranean partner countries. At least once a year the 280 equally distributed members hold a plenary session. Permanent observers to the Assembly include the Arab Inter-Parliamentary Union, Libya, the European Committee of the Regions and the Economic and Social Committee.
The PA-UfM advances the:
Visibility and transparency of the Euro-Mediterranean Partnership.
Alignment of the UfM’s work with public interest and expectation.
Democratic legitimacy of cooperation within the Mediterranean region.
Dialog between Israel, Palestine and other Arab elected officials.
The Bureau
The Bureau coordinates and represents The Assembly. It consists of four members appointed for a four-year mandate: two appointed by the Southern Mediterranean partner countries, one appointed by the EU national parliaments and one appointed by the European Parliament. The European Parliament is a permanent member of the Bureau.
The Presidency of the PA-UfM
In order to ensure parity and alternation between south and north chairs, the annual Presidency is held in rotation by each of the four members of the Bureau. The presidency of the Bureau was held by the European Parliament (2012-2013), followed by Jordan (2013-2014), Portugal (2014-2015), Morocco (2015-2016), Italy (2016-2017), Egypt (2017-2018), the European Parliament (2018-2019) and Turkey (2019-2020). The current 2020-2021 PA-UfM Presidency is held by the European Parliament.
Standing Committees
There are five standing committees in the PA-UfM:
In addition to the committees, the Bureau can establish two working groups per year.
The PA-UfM acts through resolutions or recommendations on all aspects of Euro-Mediterranean cooperation. These can concern the executive organs of the UfM, the Council of the EU, the European Commission and the national governments of partner countries. These recommendations and resolutions are not legally binding.
Recommendations and resolutions require approval by consensus when more than the half of the delegations of each of the two components – European and non-European – of the Assembly are present. If this is not possible, a qualified majority of two thirds can approve decisions.
