The EU has been active in the Mediterranean region through the Union for the Mediterranean, formerly known as the Barcelona Process. The Monitoring Committee (MoCo) for Euro-Mediterranean cooperation in research and innovation has played and continues to play a key role in bringing together EU Member States and all Mediterranean countries.

The EU has concluded bilateral Science and Technology (S&T) cooperation agreements with Egypt, Jordan, Morocco, Tunisia and Algeria. Moreover, Albania, Croatia, Israel and Turkey are all associated to the Seventh Framework Programme. The European Commission has supported scientific collaboration, policy dialogue, networking and twinning activities in the Mediterranean countries through their participation in the Research Framework Programmes. Capacity-building in research and innovation has also been funded by external policy instruments such as MEDA and the European Neighbourhood and Partnership Instrument (ENPI).