Workshop on a common emergency communication system for the Mediterranean – Oct 22, 2019

The Regional Marine Pollution Emergency Response Centre for the Mediterranean Sea (REMPEC), in collaboration with the Directorate-General for European Civil Protection and Humanitarian Aid Operations (DG ECHO), co-organised a regional Workshop on the use of the Common Emergency Communication and Information System for Marine Pollution (CECIS Marine Pollution), held from 22-23 October 2019 in the premises of DG ECHO, Brussels, Belgium. This activity was co-financed by the European Commission and REMPEC in the framework of the Project Western Mediterranean Region Marine Oil and HNS Pollution Cooperation (West MOPoCo). 

Overall, 21 representatives of the competent authorities responsible for preparedness for and response to accidental marine pollution from 12 Mediterranean countriesnamely Albania, Algeria, Bosnia & Herzegovina, Egypt, France, Israel, Malta, Montenegro, Morocco, Spain, Tunisia and Türkiye, attended the Workshop. 

The objective of the workshop was to discuss and explore the set-up of a common emergency communication system for the whole Mediterranean. REMPEC introduced the participants to the existing Emergency Communication Procedure in the Mediterranean developed by the Centre. DG ECHO provided the participants with a training session on CECIS Marine Pollution to familiarise them with the interface and its functionalities and and organised at the end of the Workshop, a visit to the Emergency Response Coordination Centre (ERCC) in the premises of DG ECHO. 

In accordance with the specific objectives of the Regional Strategy (2016-2021) inviting the Mediterranean Countries to envisage the use of CECIS Marine Pollution and the recommendations of the 13th Focal Points Meeting of REMPEC in 2019 to consider using CECIS Marine Pollution as a regional emergency communication tool, the workshop facilitated the discussion on such possibility as well as other available options.  

Participants concluded on recommending the use of CECIS Marine Pollution in principle and on tasking experts within the West MOPoCo project and the Mediterranean Technical Working Group (MTWG), in coordination with national competent authorities, to prepare a detailed analysis for submission to the 14th Focal Points Meeting of REMPEC in 2021.

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