SANTA CRUZ DE TENERIFE, 1st Oct (EUROPA PRESS) –
President Fernando Clavijo is participating in the meeting of the European Conference of Peripheral and Maritime Regions (CRPM) in pursuit of backing from his allied territories for the Canary Islands’ policies on migration and sustainable tourism.
To this end, the leader of the autonomous Government will play a prominent role in several working groups scheduled for the two-day summit in Gozo (Malta), which will host representatives from over 100 EU regions.
This Tuesday, Clavijo will commence his involvement in the CPMR with a speech at the commencement of the seminar titled ‘Transport and Tourism in Peripheral Maritime Regions: Debating challenges and exploring opportunities for transport solutions and a sustainable model for the tourism sector’.
At this European forum, the president will relay to the territorial partners of the archipelago the initiatives undertaken in the Canary Islands aimed at establishing a sustainable development model that ensures the advantages of tourism benefit the entire society within the archipelago.
Furthermore, Clavijo will elaborate on the contents of the document outlining a ‘New vision for sustainable tourism on the islands’ that has been drafted by the Canary Islands Government and will be presented for consideration at the upcoming meeting of the CPMR Islands Commission on the following day.
The head of the autonomous Executive will co-host the opening session of this seminar alongside the deputy governor for European and International Affairs of Crete (Greece), George Alexakis, as well as Joseph Borg, president of INSULEUR (Insular Chambers of Commerce and Industry of the European Union). After their presentations, two discussion panels will be conducted, centred on connectivity and sustainable tourism, featuring José Manuel Sanabria, the Deputy Minister of Tourism of the Canary Islands, in one of them.
MIGRATION CRISIS
On the opening day of the Conference of Regions summit, Fernando Clavijo will also contribute to the working group dedicated to the ‘Migration Task Force’, where he will have the chance to directly explain to his territorial partners the migration crisis currently affecting the Canary Islands and highlight the necessity for the EU to enhance its involvement along its southern border.
The head of the autonomous government will utilise this European forum, specifically, to seek cooperation regarding the plight of unaccompanied minor refugees. The Canary Islands are currently looking after over 5,500 children and youths alone, which has surpassed its accommodation capacity. In light of this situation, Clavijo is calling on both the Spanish State and Brussels for a decisive and coordinated response to ensure the rights of these minors are protected.
The president’s engagement in this CPMR forum on migration in Malta will also comprise a second address dedicated solely to detailing the ‘Tierra firma’ project. This initiative, spearheaded by the Canary Islands Government, will be showcased by Clavijo as a “successful” example of collaboration with the countries of origin to curb the departures of vessels across the perilous Atlantic Route.
This pilot project, developed in conjunction with the State and the Canarian chambers of commerce and the respective countries, has successfully facilitated the dual vocational training of nearly 50 young people in Senegal in recent months, with many of them now gaining employment in businesses within the African nation.
CANARY LEADERSHIP
The second day of the summit for the Conference of Peripheral and Maritime Regions in Gozo will see Fernando Clavijo participating in the plenary session of the Islands Commission. It is during this time that the president will advocate for the declaration formulated by the Canary Islands in support of sustainable tourism within island territories, a strategic outline that will subsequently be voted upon in the forum that establishes the priorities for these regions in the forthcoming years.
Should the document for a ‘New vision for sustainable tourism on the islands’ receive approval in Malta, the declaration will be presented to the European Parliament and the European Commission with the intention of integrating this line of work as a priority within their legislative objectives.
The Islands Commission constitutes one of the six geographic commissions of the CPMR, comprising 19 European island regional authorities situated across the Mediterranean, the Baltic Sea, and the Atlantic, Indian, and Pacific Oceans. Its aim is to enhance the prominence of islands and ensure that both Member States and the EU pay heed to their unique interests, recognising their enduring disadvantages and vulnerabilities, while implementing the most suitable policies tailored to their specific characteristics.
The Conference of Peripheral and Maritime Regions of Europe, meanwhile, is an organisation established in 1973 in Saint-Malo, consisting of 160 regions from 25 member and non-EU member states, representing over 200 million inhabitants.
