The Parliamentary Assembly and the European Parliament, in co-operation with the International Federation of Agricultural Producers (IFAP) and the International Centre for Advanced Mediterranean Agronomic Studies (ICAMAS), are jointly organising the 2nd Euro-Mediterranean Conference on Agriculture on 28 and 29 September 2006 at the seats of the two parliamentary institutions in Strasbourg. It will be attended by parliamentarians of the two assemblies and from National Parliaments as well as by representatives of agricultural organisations from Mediterranean countries.

The specific objective of this 2nd Conference is to take stock on the development of Euro-Mediterranean co-operation in the fields of agriculture and rural development and to deepen a common reflection on current and new challenges.

The Conference will be a follow-up to work already carried out after the 1st Conference, which was held on 14-15 June 2001. However, it will also consider the new reality of Mediterranean agriculture in the context of recent reforms of the CAP, the development of commercial multilateralism (WTO), co-operation with Southern Mediterranean countries involved in the Barcelona process and, finally, the possibilities opened up by the new EU Neighbourhood Policy.

In this context, the Conference will, under the general theme of "Building a Euro-Mediterranean agricultural and rural policy in a global context”:

-        consider the agricultural and rural policies being implemented in the Mediterranean countries taking into account the relationship between Europe and her southern partners, with a view to consolidating an approach based on co-operation between operators on both sides of the Mediterranean;

-       evaluate the effects on the commercial preferences of the Euro-Mediterranean area of the multilateral negotiations currently under way to produce a new WTO Agriculture Agreement;

-       analyse the available tools for improving the Mediterranean identity of agricultural products in markets which are more open and global;

-        promote a dialogue between European countries and those of the Southern Mediterranean already participating in the Barcelona process and particularly between parliamentarians and representatives of the agricultural sector.