Minister Cerar commended the successful cooperation with the Union for the Mediterranean and thanked SG Kamel for financial assistance and support in organising the Creative Forum Ljubljana. The Minister particularly advocated active cooperation to enhance capacity building and boost creative hubs.

Taking into account that the participants of this year’s Creative Forum have shown exceptional interest in creating links at all levels, Slovenia and the Union for the Mediterranean will organise workshops and meetings aimed at accomplishing the set goals. In cooperation with partners such as EMUNI and IEDC and creative management representatives, draft training programmes for the creative sector will be proposed. In particular, it was stressed that the Republic of Slovenia and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs are to play a leading and connecting role in the rapprochement, understanding, and cooperation of both regions. 

Minister Cerar underlined the importance of the UfM as a platform for dialogue and cooperation in solving the current challenges in the region. He mentioned the Positive Agenda for Youth in the Mediterranean as one of Slovenia’s main contributions to the Union for the Mediterranean promoting the empowerment of youth through education and inter-cultural dialogue.

Minister Cerar announced the amount of Slovenia’s financial contribution to support the operations of the Union for the Mediterranean.

When discussing the current activities of the Union, its Secretary-General pointed to the preparations for the 25^th Anniversary of the Barcelona Process in November 2020. In addition, they discussed further cooperation in organising the Creative Forum and the Union's ministerial conference on higher education, which is to be hosted by Slovenia in 2021.