PRESS RELEASE – EUROPEAN COMMISSION

The Commission has signed a contribution agreement with the WHO Regional Office for Europe (WHO Europe) to support Member States in retaining nurses in their health systems and making the profession more attractive to nurses.

The agreement, funded with pound 1.3 million from the EU4Health programme, will involve activities across all EU Member States over a 36-month period. Particular focus will be given to those countries with significant shortages in healthcare workers, and specifically shortages in nurses.

Stella Kyriakides, Commissioner for Health and Food Safety, said: ‘Nurses are the backbone of our health systems and are critical in ensuring that patients receive high-quality, professional care when they need it. Today’s action is a sign of our commitment to address the serious health workforce issues that many Member States are facing and to improve the resilience of health systems across the European Health Union. We are delighted to work with WHO Europe on this important initiative.’

Through clo
se co-operation with the Member States, nurses’ organisations and social partners, the initiative will be tailored to specific needs at national and sub-national level.

The funding will include creating recruitment action plans, mentoring programmes to attract a new generation of nurses, drafting nurse workforce impact assessments to understand the problems behind these structural shortages and strategies to improve the health and wellbeing of nurses, and implementing training opportunities and actions to ensure the healthcare workforce can reap benefits of the digital transformation.

(For more information: Stefan De Keersmaecker – Tel.: +32 2 296 22 53; Laetitia Close – Tel.: +32 2 296 70 73)

Commissioner Simson travels to Namibia and South Africa to deepen energy relations and cooperation on hydrogen

Commissioner for Energy, Kadri Simson, is in Namibia this week and will then travel to South Africa next Monday, 9 September, to enhance the EU’s energy relations with these countries.

The visit to Namibia
follows the endorsement of a roadmap for the EU-Namibia strategic partnership on sustainable raw materials value chains and renewable hydrogen by Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and President of Namibia Hage Geingob in October 2023. The roadmap is supported by pound 1 billion in investments by the EU, its Member States, and European financial institutions.

Commissioner Simson will attend the Global African Hydrogen Summit in Windhoek and participate in panel discussions on ‘Delivering Africa’s Energy Transition Through The Development Of The Global Energy Map’ on Wednesday, and a ministerial panel on ‘Africa’s Hydrogen and Clean Energy Frontiers: The Industry’s next major opportunities’ on Thursday.

As part of the Summit on Wednesday, she will also attend the signing ceremony of several programmes funded by the EU institutions and its Member States to support the clean energy transition and hydrogen development in Namibia. This will be followed by a press conference that will be later available
on EbS. On Friday and Saturday, the Commissioner will be visiting a series of energy-related projects, including the ‘HyIron’ site for the production of green iron, and the Port of Walvis Bay, which the EU is supporting with a study to turn it into an industrial and logistics hub for the region. She will also visit the ‘Towards an Inclusive Design of the Renewable Energy Transition’ (TIDRET) project, which aims to expand access to affordable and clean energy, especially in vulnerable communities.

During her stay in Windhoek, Namibia, the Commissioner has also planned a series of meetings with Namibian authorities, companies, and civil society organisations. More information is available on the Commissioners’ calendar.

On Monday, 9 September, Commissioner Simson will be in Pretoria, South Africa, where she will meet with the Minister for Energy and Electricity, Kgosientsho Ramogkopa, to discuss the green hydrogen agenda and the EU’s engagement in the development of the electricity transmission grid in the co
untry. She will also meet with the Minister for Trade, Industry and Competition, Mpho Parks Tau, to take stock of collaboration on critical raw materials and value chains, such as e-vehicles and electric batteries.

Source: Cyprus News Agency