Following the request made by the European Council in Laeken, in December 2001, the European Commission has adopted a report proposing to the Council the creation of a Euro-Mediterranean Bank (EMB). The EMB would operate as a subsidiary arm of the European Investment Bank (EIB); the latter would retain the majority of shares in the EMB, which would take over responsibility for the sectors of Mediterranean activity and promote the development of the private sector in the Mediterrean area. The EMB would also contribute to the funding of infrastructural projects especially in the liberalized sectors or the sectors in the process of being liberalized. The main objective of the EMB, said the President of the Commission, Romano Prodi, is to support economic development and stability in the Mediterranean region.
