Special Edition 2009
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EU Treaty of Lisbon brings new benefits to Europe and its PartnersOn 1 December 2009, the Treaty of Lisbon entered into force. It provides the Union with the legal framework and modern tools and institutions necessary to meet efficiently and effectively future challenges to respond to citizens’ demands and to our partners’ expectations. |  |
Milestones in EU-Syria Relations 2009 | |
EditorialThirty years ago, in 1979, the European Commission (EC) opened an office in Damascus. More than 50 European Union (EU)-Syria cooperation projects have been launched since, complemented by EU Member States’ activities and loans provided by the European Investment Bank (EIB). |  |
A Syrian Journalist’s 14 year experience with the EUJune 17, 2009 was my big day. A huge celebration was being held at Paris Dauphine University to mark the graduation of 26 Syrian Executive MBA students - including myself. It took two years of hard work in twelve subjects, concluding with a thesis. After these intensive years, I could still remember the day I was interviewed by the programme’s selection committee - for the last of many classes to be sponsored by the EU. | |
Energy security: boost use of Solar Energy in the southern MediterraneanAs we approach Copenhagen we need to focus not only on targets for reductions of emissions, but how these reductions can be made feasible. Alongside greater energy efficiency, a greater use of renewable sources of energy will be essential to any meaningful implementation of an international climate deal. The EU was the first global actor to adopt legally binding targets for renewable energy, energy saving and emission reductions. | |
30 years of EU-Syria Cooperation: A reflection by Deputy Prime Minister for Economic Affairs al DardariMr. al-Dardari has followed European Union (EU)-Syria cooperation closely over the past 12 years - first in his capacity as associate consultant at the EU-funded Syrian European Business Centre (SEBC), then at the UNDP (United Nations Development Programme) and, from 2003-2005, as the Head of the Syrian State Planning Commission. |  |
Study in Europe Day 2009 Edition in LattakiaAfter a successful first edition in Damascus University, the EU Delegation’s second Study in Europe day was hosted by Tishreen University and under the patronage of the Syrian Minister of Higher Education, on 23 November 2009. |  |
Saving Patients’ Lives and Shaping Syria’s Future Health ManagersFourteen year old Fatima was feeling a lot of dizziness and fatigue, and her growth was at risk to be delayed. The solution? Four hours of dialysis Saturdays, Mondays and Wednesdays. Thanks to European Union (EU)-Syria cooperation in the Health sector, there was no longer a waiting list for children; she could begin right away. |  |
Children Celebrate International Drawing Competition on Gender Equality"Once upon a time there was a girl and a boy, without both of them, the world would no longer be…" For the second year, the Delegation of European Union to Syria, in cooperation with the Ministry of Education, launched a drawing competition on gender equality |  |
Breathing New Life into the Old City of DamascusIn Syria today, a person who wants to obtain a license for restoration, re-building or digging has to visit many offices. To facilitate citizens’ access to such permits, the Municipal Administration Modernisation (MAM) programme has started creating “One Stop Shops” around the country. |  |
Discovering Talents, Finding JobsSix million Syrians are between 12 and 20 years of age. Within eight years, these young people will all need jobs. To meet these employment needs, jobs must be created and the potential employees appropriately trained. The EU-funded SKILLS business training programme has taken up this challenge. |  |
Erasmus Mundus- Tariq and Abid in GermanyIn August 2008, Tariq and Abid were ready to begin their fourth and final year at Damascus University, studying Electronics and Information Technology. A few days before the start of courses, they discovered European Union scholarships to study in Europe: Erasmus Mundus scholarships. |  |
Ask the doctor - a pilot Clinic on Reproductive and Family HealthRazida lives in the Mezzeh, Damascus. She discovered the Halbuni clinic pilot project through an awareness campaign in her neighbourhood. "I had many questions in mind about the family’s health, but I had not gone to the doctor to ask them. If you go to the doctor you have to pay. In the family, we go to the doctor only if we are sick. |  |
Bringing European and Arab Gas together - a Syrian experienceBassem Toumeh works for the state-owned Syrian Gas Company, which manages the gas sector in Syria. He has been with the EU-funded Euro-Arab Mashrek Gas Market project, as the main Syrian partner, from the start. |  |
Many languages, One Music: the Euromed Youth OrchestraThey were all between 18 and 24. 40 of them were Syrian, 50 came from other Mediterranean countries and Europe. They gathered in August 2008 in Damascus for 10 days. They had not met each other before, but at the end of their big week they performed all together for an extraordinary concert at the Omayyad Palace. |  |
Farm to ForkThe safety of our food affects us all - producers and consumers, Europeans and Syrians. A first joint workshop between a private Syrian company (Amana Foods which produces Hana and Bavaria) and the European Commission explored how to ensure the quality of meat and other foods and to facilitate Syrian food exports towards the EU. |  |
Palestine Refugees break Employment RecordsTeaming up with the UN organisation for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA), the European Union (EU) has found a youthful fountain of employment success. Of the over 500 graduates of the UNRWA-run Damascus Training Centre, many have found a job even before finishing the two year Vocational Education and Training programmes. |  |
Syrian and Iraqi Children playing in the shadeEleven year old Miriam is from Baghdad. She moved to Damascus and has been attending the Jerji Toma School, Sahnaya, Damascus since 2008. This year she witnessed a transformation in her school. When she first arrived, she remembers paint cracking off the walls, the hot summer heat when playing in the school yard, old school books… |  |
Syrian Journalists visit European Union and Partners in BrusselsTo familiarise the Syrian journalists working on International Affairs with the European institutions and policies, the European Commission organised a press visit to Brussels in November 2009. |  |
HELLOs and GOOD-BYEs Welcome to the EU Delegation in Damascus: Good Bye & Good Luck to: | |