The Basque Maritime Forum : An organisation committed to the social and economic development of the Basque Country

The Basque Maritime Forum was established as a non-profit-making organisation, which includes companies, associations, banks, research centres and universities, in 1993 and was officially recognised as a Priority Cluster by the Basque Government in 1999. The BMF’s mission is to represent, defend, consolidate, promote and improve the competitiveness of the companies in the Basque maritime sector by means of the services it offers in line with its Core Strategic Areas (Internationalisation, Technology, Management Excellence, Finance and Taxes, Training and People and Communication, Information and Representation). As a whole, the maritime sector plays a very important role in the economy of the Basque Country, roughly representing 1.74% of its GNP. The turnover of these companies in 2010 was: €1,148 million in those activities directly related to the sector and €2,598 million overall. Regarding employment, the number of workers in the Basque maritime sector showed an increase in the year 2010, with 7,560 more employees working in activities directly related to the sector and 17,017 more overall. The Basque Maritime Forum has consolidated itself as the sector’s main reference point within the region and one of the most highly regarded clusters in the sector on a national and international level. The BMF has helped set up the Cluster Maritimo Español (the Spanish Maritime Cluster), as well as a significant number of regional clusters, and often works and cooperates with other European organisations on projects that have an international scope.