María Helena de Felipe, President of AFAEMME, highlights the role of women entrepreneurs’ organizations in the New Pact for the Mediterranean

Izmir (Turkey), 3 December 2025 – The XVII edition of the MedaWomen Entrepreneurs Forum was held in Izmir, Turkey, within the framework of MEDSPARC – International Business Summit, with the central theme «Triple Transformation: Collaboration for Sustainable Future«. The event, organized by İZİKAD (AFAEMME member) and hosted by the Izmir Chamber of Commerce, brought together presidents of women entrepreneurs’ organizations from across the Mediterranean to address the challenges of sustainability, digitalization and social innovation.

High-level panel on sustainability and resilience in non-governmental organizations

María Helena de Felipe Lehtonen, President of AFAEMME (Federation of Mediterranean Businesswomen’s Associations), participated as keynote speaker in the panel «Sustainability and Resilience in NGOs«, alongside distinguished Mediterranean leaders: Özden Erten (President of İZİKAD), Lina Tsaltampasi (President of SEGE – Greece), Oya Eroğlu (President of GİFED), Dr. Reem Al-Baghdadi (President of JFBPW – Jordan), Rim Siam (President of the Equality Commission of the Alexandria Chamber of Commerce – Egypt), Elizabeth Trallero (CEO of Congo Plast and AFAEMME Board Member), and Funda Dedeoğlu (President of GÜNMARSİFED).

The panel was moderated by Betül Sezgin (Vice President of GİFED and Past President of İZİKAD).

The New Pact for the Mediterranean as strategic framework

In her speech, María Helena de Felipe placed the forum in the context of the 30th anniversary of the Barcelona Process and the launch of the New Pact for the Mediterranean, approved by the European Commission in October 2024 and presented at the 10th Regional Forum of the Union for the Mediterranean (UfM) held on 28 November in Barcelona.

«In times of geopolitical uncertainty, the Mediterranean is more than ever at the center of EU action,» stated De Felipe, citing the words of Kaja Kallas, High Representative and Vice President of the European Commission, and Dubravka Šuica, EU Commissioner for the Mediterranean, who noted that «the Pact has the potential to unlock new drivers of human development, sustainability, and stability across our shared Mediterranean space».

The New Pact is structured around three fundamental pillars:

1. People as drivers of change: higher education, vocational training, skills development, employment, special attention to youth and civil society, mobility, culture, tourism and sports.
2. Stronger, more sustainable and integrated economies: modernization of trade and investment relations, promotion of clean energy and technology, water resilience, blue economy and agriculture, and digital and transport connectivity.
3. Security, preparedness and migration management: with priority initiatives focused on readiness and resilience in the event of disasters in the Mediterranean.

The challenge of triple transformation for women entrepreneurs

«From AFAEMME, founded 23 years ago in Barcelona and currently representing 65 women entrepreneurs’ organizations from 23 Mediterranean countries, we have the challenge of training and empowering our women entrepreneurs in green, digital and social transformation. This is precisely the focus of this Forum: the triple transformation and collaboration for a sustainable future,» stated the President of AFAEMME.

De Felipe highlighted that, following the interventions of the distinguished panelists with their different regional perspectives, it became clear how different Mediterranean regions are advancing in this triple transformation and what additional measures are needed to consolidate it.

Entrepreneurship Awards Gala

The day concluded with the Gala Dinner & Entrepreneurship Awards Ceremony, where the talent and leadership of women entrepreneurs across the Mediterranean was recognized, celebrating the achievements of entrepreneurs who are making a difference in their respective countries and sectors.

Institutional acknowledgements

María Helena de Felipe expressed her sincere appreciation to the organizers of MEDSPARC – International Business Summit, especially İZİKAD and its team, with special mention to Betül Sezgin and Özden Erten. She also thanked the Izmir Chamber of Commerce for hosting this seventeenth edition of the forum, ASCAME (Association of Mediterranean Chambers of Commerce), and the presidents of women entrepreneurs’ organizations from Greece, Jordan, Egypt, Spain and Turkey. Finally, she dedicated special recognition to her AFAEMME colleagues Elizabeth Trallero and M. Jo Alberdi.

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