Morocco’s key role in fostering relations between Africa and the United States as well as the existing investment prospects between the two parties were highlighted by the Head of Government, Aziz Akhannouch, in Washington.
“Morocco can play a central role in relations between Africa and the United States, with regard to investment programs, the private sector and the financial sector,” Akhannouch told the press on the sidelines of his participation in the U.S.- Africa Leaders Summit, held in the U.S. federal capital on December 13- 15.
The Moroccan government will implement all the means at its disposal in this regard, he said.
He also touched on Morocco’s partnership with the Millennium Challenge Account, noting that important programs have been implemented successfully in the frame of this partnership and that these programs can serve as models in the world.
Akhannouch insisted that the Washington Summit is an opportunity to recall that the success of Moroccan-US relations requires willingness at the highest level of the country, as evidenced by the resolve of King Mohammed VI who made the decision to conclude a free trade agreement with the United States.
Thanks to this FTA, Morocco has been able to triple the volume of its trade with the United States, the Moroccan official noted.
Akhannouch recalled that Morocco’s commitment, at the highest level of the country, has also been concretized by more than 50 state visits to some thirty African countries, which have been crowned by the signing of more than 1,000 agreements. These moves propelled Morocco as the first investor in West Africa.
The Head of Government referred to the main economic meetings to be held in Morocco, including the first Bloomberg New Economy Gateway Africa in June 2023 as well as the Annual Meetings of the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund in Marrakech in October 2023.
He noted, in this regard, that these meetings will help to raise the interest of major investors about the transformation Morocco is experiencing and the efforts it is undertaking. Participation in the Washington Summit is an opportunity “to assure the United States that Morocco is there to support the pace of these investments,” he said.