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ABOUT MIF
The Forum has the following Mission Statement, endorsed by the Plenary Session in Helsinki:
- Provide a permanent interface to the Commission for industry, in particular SMEs
- Foster the creation of synergies between maritime activities in various sectors
- Provide input to the political debate and support the decision making process
- Improve the involvement of Member States in maritime policies
- Keep the European Parliament advised of developments/problems of maritime industries and involve MEPs where appropriate
- Maintain and promote a competitive maritime cluster for Europe, including maritime know-how
- Enhance the visibility of maritime industries towards the general public.
How does the MIF operate?
The MIF is run by and for Europe’s maritime industries and its periodic Plenary Session is the focal point, around which its activities are organised. It is guided by a Steering Committee, under which a Co-ordination Group provides day-to-day management of the work of the Forum, which takes place in its Working Groups.
Who is involved?
Participation in the Forum consists of representatives from the European Industry Associations, representatives of the EU Member States and EFTA, the Commission, the Parliament and Regional bodies, together with affiliated organisations and observers. Links to these participant groups are included on the Organisations page.
Background to the MIF
The MIF was re-launched in June 2000, in its new format, under a strategy proposed by industry. The MIF was originally created in 1992 as an initiative of the then Commissioners Bangemann and Van Miert. At that time, the Forum had four Working Groups initially led by the Commission Services before industry took the lead and chairmanship of the Groups. The main objective of the MIF was to address topics of common interest to the industry sectors with a view to enhancing their competitiveness. The annual Plenary is a continuing feature of the MIF and the works of those earlier Groups, together with the conclusions of each Forum, are to be found in the Proceedings of the respective Plenary Sessions.
Documents from the MIF
Most of the working documents produced by the MIF can be found on this website. In addition, other useful approved material of direct relevance is also included here, subject to availability of space. Where these documents are hosted on this website, they generally appear in a PDF file format, with some slide presentation material also being provided; to view such files, the visitor’s computer will need to have suitable software installed on it.