A European Observatory for Islands, in conjunction with Eurostat and existing regional networks, was proposed yesterday by Artur Lima at the plenary meeting of the Islands Commission of the Commission of Peripheral Maritime Regions (CPMR).

According to the Vice-President of the Regional Government and also Vice-President of the CPMR with responsibility for Energy, “Europe needs to know its islands better in order to serve and enhance them better.”

To this end, he said, it is necessary to carry out an “impact assessment of EU policies and regulations, with specific indicators on additional costs and connectivity,” as well as “strategic coordination between the future Strategy for Islands and the revision of the Strategy for the Outermost Regions, ensuring consistency, complementarity, and mutual respect between the two instruments.”

During his speech, Artur Lima pointed out that “national statistics rarely capture the island scale, the costs of periphery, double periphery, or the logistical difficulties of islands and Outermost Regions.”

NEW STRATEGY

The Azorean government official participated in a round table discussion on the future of European islands and the proposal for a new European Union Strategy for Islands.

For the Vice President, this is “a particularly decisive moment for the recognition of the specificities of insularity in the European context,” and he represented “with great pride, the voice of the Azores.”

“This reflection unites us because it stems from our common condition as islands—unique territories that face structural challenges of connectivity, scale, and sustainability, but which, at the same time, offer unique opportunities to Europe,” he said.

Artur Lima stressed that any discussion on the Strategy for the Islands “is also a reflection that requires lucidity and balance,” as “European islands are diverse in their realities, dimensions, and institutional frameworks.”

The Islands Commission is one of the six geographical commissions of the Conference of Peripheral Maritime Regions. The CPMR brings together more than 150 regions that are part of Europe’s maritime basin or maritime periphery, representing more than 200 million people.

In Diário Insular-José Lourenço-director.

Translated into English as a community outreach program by the Portuguese Beyond Borders Institute (PBBI) and the Modern and Classical Languages and Literatures Department (MCLL), in collaboration with Bruma Publication and ADMA (Azores-Diaspora Media Alliance) at California State University, Fresno. PBBI thanks Luso Financial for sponsoring NOVIDADES.