TECHLOG project launch event took place on the opening day of the International Maritime Transport and Logistics Conference - MARLOG 2022 in its 11th edition on the 20^th of March, in which major stakeholders of the transport sector in Egypt and the project partners from Italy, Spain, Lebanon, Tunisia and Egypt were brought together. The Egyptian stakeholders included representatives from shipping and logistics companies, cargo handling companies, freight forwarding companies and port authority representatives.

MARLOG conference organized annually by Arab Academy for Science, Technology and Maritime Transport (AASTMT), TECHLOG project partner, is one of the most distinguished conferences in the field of maritime transport and logistics. Due to the fact that AASTMT is the leading educational organization in the field of maritime transport and technology in middle east with fifty- years’ experience of excellence in education and research, TECHLOG project committee considered organizing its launch event during the conference as a great opportunity for meeting up with various stakeholders in the field. The project aims at strengthening research-industry links in the (trans)port sector by establishing a permanent cross-border EU-Med space where research organizations and (trans)port industries co-create, test and share new Technology Transfer Initiatives based on advanced simulation technologies.

The event included a panel discussion with the participation of Professor Medhat El-Qadi, Head of the Egyptian International Freight Forwarding Association (EIFFA), Dr. Sandra Haddad, Vice Dean for Scientific Research and Graduate Studies at the College of International Transport and Logistics, and Dr. Alaa Abdel Bari, Vice President of the Arab Academy for Science and Technology for Scientific Research. This came in the presence of Dr. Alaa Ezz, Secretary-General of the Union of Chambers of Commerce, and members of the Board of Directors, Eng. Sherif Al-Jaziri, and Mr. Mahmoud Marei.

This year MARLOG 11 focused on a sustainable blue economy besides related activities which have effects on maritime transport and logistics. The conference themes deals with theories, applications and challenges facing a sustainable blue economy, aiming to bring researchers to exchange their experiences and research results on all aspects of Sustainable Blue Economy. Topics related to Blue Economy Management Technology, Innovative investments in blue economy, Blue economy: Maritime transport and Ports services, Smart innovations for blue economy, Challenges and opportunities of Blue economy and Blue Economy: Environmental Prospective were included in the conference themes.