Participation

Accession to MedNET presupposes a voluntary commitment and a mutual interest. Any Mediterranean country and any country interested in this co-operation can become a member. To join the network, the Minister responsible for drug policy sends a commitment letter to the Pompidou Group’s Executive Secretary and appoints a national representative with the authority to commit on behalf of his/her government.

The European Commission and the European Monitoring Centre for Drugs and Drug Addiction (EMCDDA) attend the meetings as observers.

 Chair and Vice-Chair

The positions of Chair and Vice-Chair are held for a period of one year by a Northern Mediterranean country and a Southern Mediterranean country alternately. In order to ensure the continuity of work, the Vice-Chair is expected to take over the position of Chair the following year. Chairs and Vice-Chairs are elected by consensus.

 Secretariat

The secretariat of the Pompidou Group is responsible for the implementation of the work programme and the smooth running of the network. It also manages the MedNET budget and ensures synergy between other working groups of the Pompidou Group and other Council of Europe entities.

 Meetings

The Steering Committee, made up of the representatives of the participating countries, meets at least once a year to adopt the work programme based on projects submitted by each country, review the implementation of ongoing projects and discuss future activities.

The EMCDDA participates in the steering committee and shares its expertise, in particular concerning data collection and analysis and support for national observatories.

 Working methods

MedNET facilitates the recognition, dissemination and adaptation of good practices and experiences which have proved successful, in partnership with other key national and international actors working in the region. In this way, participating countries, through their representatives, share and exchange knowledge and know-how, providing the network with scientifically validated information in all relevant fields. They are committed to informing the competent national authorities about any MedNET-led initiatives. Details of the national and regional projects implemented are included in the annual activity report.

The overall work of the MedNET network is subject to regular and thorough evaluation.

 Funding

Participating countries are committed to contributing to the MedNET budget, financially or by making available resources, in order to ensure project implementation.

Each project is funded in part by the requesting country, through a financial or in-kind contribution.

The budget is funded through voluntary contributions from individual countries, Council of Europe/European Union joint projects and the Council of Europe Neighbourhood Policy.