Invest in Med team wishes you a happy and prosperous new year 2009 !

Second call for initiatives to be submitted before March 2009
The Invest in Med programme has launched by end December its second call for initiatives. The members of the consortium networks (ANIMA Investment Network, Ascame, Business Med, EUROCHAMBRES) are invited to set up partnerships and propose projects having a sustainable impact on the economic development of the Mediterranean area. The programme will offer a co-financing to the selected projects. The deadline for submitting initiative propositions is the 1st March 2009. The rules and processes for participating are available for download

Kick off of four new initiatives in January 2009
After Med Franchise and Med Industrial Partnerships which kicked off last November and will pursue their activities during the first quarter 2009, four new initiatives will start working in January: Med Tracking, project linked to securing commercial shipping and co-ordinated by the Euromed network of engineer schools; Med Aeronautic which aims at defining and promoting the positioning of the Med region within the global aeronautic value chain, and is supported by the Moroccan Investment Department; Novel Euromed Postal from La Poste and Euromed Postal network, which will develop services to support SME development; and Carrefour Maghreb managed by AFEM, which will promote business opportunities towards women entrepreneurs

Register to the Med-Academy sessions !
Initiated within the Invest in Med programme, the Med-Academy proposes trainings and experience sharing to the staff of the Med partners countries organisations in charge of economic development: Business Confederations, Chambers of Commerce and Industry, Economic Development Agencies. Beyond the transfer of knowhow, the Med-Academy is the occasion to develop an informal network between the persons working in these structures. Members of the Invest in Med consortium networks are the priority target participants for these sessions which will start from January 2009 onwards. Check the training programme on www.invest-in-med.eu and register directly on the web site

Egypt – Mubarak's government willing to create 1,000 new factories by 2011
The Egyptian authorities have recently approved a large scale industrial development plan aiming at increasing the production and export of Egyptian industrial goods by 2011.
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Jordan – Telecomunications – Jordan postpones tender for 3G licences
The 3G tender, scheduled to be launch last sunday, was finally postponed for a few days following the request of 3 companies: Zain, Orange Mobile and Xpress.
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Lebanon – Telecomunications - The government urged to privatise domestic mobile phone network
“We are missing huge opportunities, most importantly in job creation… The telecoms sector could generate thousands of jobs,” a former senior government official told the Financial Times.
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Syria – Telecommunication - Submission bid for a third mobile phone network licence next year
The 3G tender, scheduled to be launch last sunday, was finally postponed for a few days following the request of 3 companies: Zain, Orange Mobile and Xpress.
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Tunisia – Telecommunication - Tender for a third mobile phone network
The government has just committed to launch an international call in 2009, for an attribution of license in 2010. This decision enhances the liberalisation of the Tunisian telecom market.
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Algeria - Energy
Italy’s energy giant ENI was awarded the Kerzak exploration licence, in the Timimoun Basin, in south west Algeria.

Egypt - Electronic components
US electronics giant Intel to team up with Egypt's Boraq for Electronics and Industries which will assemble locally Intel motherboards for regional markets.

Israel - Electronic components
The electronics giant Thales to buy in 2 steps a 100% of Yokneam-based CMT Medical Technologies, a developer of medical imaging systems.

Jordan - Services to company
The company Globe Williams International (GWI)to form a 60/40 JV with local Darat Jordan Holdings (DJH) to provide facility management services, mainly in Jordan.

Lebanon - Finance
The London-based fund Capital Trust Group / EuroMena to acquire part of Chedid Capital Holding, an insurance and re-insurance group, in order to finance its regional expansion.

Libya - Agro-food
Etablissement Slama Frères to create Nejma Edible Oil, a 60-40 JV with a local partner, which will package and manufacture vegetal edible oil products.

Morocco - Services to compnay
The India-grown BPO specialist Genpact to start operations in Morocco by setting up a French speaking centre of up to 1000 positions.

Syria - Railway materiel
Turkish state-owned railway company Turkiye Cumhuriyeti Devlet Demir Yollari (TCDD) to ink a preliminary agreement to establish a joint train and wagon assembly and maintenance factory in Aleppo.

Tunisia - Distribution
The Moroccan furniture and decoration chain of stores Kitea plans to expand in Tunisia.

Turkey - Paper
The international paper and packaging company Mondi / Tire Kutsan to invest in the production capacities of the Izmit manufacturing plant.

Algeria – Trade: Algeria keen to create new free zone with the European Free Trade Association
"The first step will be to eliminate the custom's duties for products coming from the member countries (Switzerland, Norway, Iceland and Lichtenstein) and those from Algeria", a top Algerian official says.
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Egypt – Morocco and Egypt enter the latest Gartner's offshore IT 'Top 30'
Gartner is a US-based consulting firm providing research and analysis on information technology, computer hardware, software, communications and related technology industries.
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Israel – Brussels authorises American Barr buy out by the pharmaceutical Israeli group Teva
This repurchase, of an amount of 7.46 billion dollars, to which are added a resumption of debt of approximately 1.5 billion dollars, had been launched by the Israeli group at the end of July 2008.
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Libya – Daewoo to set up an electric equipment factory in Jordan
This new Jordan-based production unit may employ up to 5.000 local staff including 1.200 engineers and it should be one of the biggest in the whole MENA region.
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Lebanon – ICT: Lebanon could turn into a strategic hub between Europe and the Middle East
In the context of a global economic slowdown, Lebanon is increasingly seen by investors as a competitive location with highly skilled and trained staff, IT services and important off-shoring capabilities.
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Morocco – A new wind park will be built between Tangiers and Tétouan
The project, whose cost is estimated at 100 million euros, will be led by the company Nareva Holding, held by the Moroccan group ONA and specialised in environment and energy trade.
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Tunisia – Innovations favouring the investments in the finance law 2009
The bill of finances 2009 includes significant innovations as regards investment promotion, in particular on the import duties and the transfer of companies.
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14 to 16 January 2009 - Med-Academy: Introduction to Foreign Direct Investments, Marseille, France
The objective of the training is to meet the demands of the members of the Invest in Med consortium networks, by giving them answers to the following questions:
What are Foreign Direct Investments (FDIs)?
What can FDI bring to the countries involved in the Invest in Med programme?
What are the national and regional strategies and tools to attract FDIs?.
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14 to 16 January 2009 - Med-Tracking :Med-Tracking- kick-off meeting, Marseille, France
This kick-off workshop will focus on the definition of the operational, political and strategic management of the Med-Tracking Initiative: It will bring the consortium members together so to define the project main tasks and milestones, organise working groups and validate an overall project plan from January to December 2009
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26 to 28 January 2009 - Hassi Messaoud Industries 2009, Hassi Messaoud, Algeria
The CFCIA (French Chamber of Commerce and Industry in Algeria) and its Algerian and French institutional partners will organise HASSI MESSAOUD INDUSTRIES 2009, the International Oil and Gaz Fair in Hassi Messaoud (Euro Japan site).
[Read+]

30 to 31 January 2009 - Seminar on SMEs financing, Tunis, Tunisia
BFPME (Bank of financing SMEs), member of G-NEXID, will organise a seminar on SMEs financing. It will focus on SMEs financing techniques, resources as well as risk management, etc.
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17 to 27 January 2009 - Med-Franchise: Networking workshop for organisations providing support to companies and participating to fairs, Ljubljana, Slovenia
The workshop will provide presentation from distinguished specialist on the franchise subject and exchanges of experiences; presentation of one or two successful franchises, discussion on the intermediary results of the study and a display presentation of selected franchises and innovative approaches in the frame of the project (preferably one from each participant country). Mor information on line soon.

29 to 31 January 2009 - Eurochambres Trade Academy Forum, Menthon Saint Bernard, France
In the framework of the In Med Training Forum - an initiative aiming at upgrading Southern Mediterranean business representative organisations - 5 managers from southern Mediterranean business representative organisations will participate in the EUROCHAMBRES Trade Academy in order to benchmark and exchange best practices with other organisations both in the Mediterranean and Europe.
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16 February 2009 - MED-Academy: FDI resource centre and on-line investor servicing
How to be efficient and reactive in dealing with requests by investors?
This seminar will present methods and tools for on-line preparation of attractive offers.
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