European Parliament Vice-President Rodi Kratsa-Tsagaropoulou will be visiting Malta this week to address the annual general meeting of Europe Direct in her capacity of Vice-President responsible for Communication and Information policy.
Europe Direct is a network established in view of providing further information to the European Citizens on the EU, its Institutions, its functioning and project.
It is key to better understanding Europe and its activities, and in that respect constitutes an essential element to enhanced European democracy: “The European Parliament, the only European Institution directly elected by the European Citizens has a say in this unique communication tool in order to guarantee further interaction between the Institutions and the Citizens of all regions, in all Member States” noted Mrs Kratsa.
Ms Kratsa, a Greek MEP who hails from the European People’s Party, is elected Member of the European Parliament since 1999 and Vice-President since 2007.
A member of the European Union’s delegation which monitored the elections in Tunisia in the past weeks, Ms Kratsa said the European Parliament has supported the people of Arab countries in their efforts towards democracy and dignity, which will open the path to further stability and development.
The EU delegation deemed the elections in Tunisia had been conducted in a very transparent way and in a context of freedom of expression. Mrs. Kratsa stressed the exceptional opportunities that are emerging for the European and Mediterranean countries to strengthen cooperation among them, at all levels and particularly at political and economic level.
There was a lot the EU could do to assist its southern neighbours. “We can help on the political level through parliamentary cooperation, through exchange of good practices, through cooperation between EU and Arab civil society organisations, educational and cultural programmes. Furthermore, it is essential to foster the dialogue with our Southern Partners in order to assist them efficiently in the process of a successful democratic transition,” Mrs Kratsa said.
The EP Vice-President, who is also a Member on the Committees on Economic and Monetary Affairs and on Women’s Rights and Gender Equality, said Malta’s deep insight about the situation in North Africa was very important for the EU to understand how it should move ahead from now on.
Kratsa is also the Vice-President responsible for Euro-Mediterranean and in that capacity she is an avid promoter of intercultural dialogue and has a special interest in the inter-parliamentary dialogue of the Union for Mediterranean.
In that respect, and in close cooperation with its President Professor Joseph Mifsud, she is responsible for the Euro-Mediterranean University (EMUNI) project within the Parliamentary Assembly of the Union for the Mediterranean.