Morocco has been regularly calling for inter-African coordination and cooperation mechanisms to be enhanced in various fields with a view to achieving regional economic integration, stressed King Mohammed VI.
“In keeping with its commitment to regional integration in Africa, Morocco has been consistently working with its African partners to implement transformative projects that can considerably improve the quality of life of millions of Africans,” said the Sovereign in a message addressed on Wednesday to participants at the Fourth Africa Investment Forum being held in Marrakech from November 08 to 10, under the theme “Unlocking Africa’s Value Chains.”
The Morocco-Nigeria Gas Pipeline project is part of that endeavor that reflects “my resolve to lay the groundwork for genuine regional cooperation,” added the King in the message, which was read out by Omar Kabbaj, Advisor to His Majesty the King.
Welcoming the interest expressed by bilateral and multilateral partners in this project, and in particular regional and international financial institutions, to provide effective support for the implementation of this strategic project, the Sovereign said that the project will enable all countries along the pipeline route to have access to reliable energy supplies and to be more resilient to exogenous energy price shocks.
In addition, the king noted that over the past two decades, Morocco “has made infrastructure development a priority in all economic sectors. As a result, my country has become a model in infrastructure investment.”
The Sovereign cited several examples to illustrate the Kingdom’s proactive policy of developing large-scale infrastructure projects to support the various sectoral strategies launched by Morocco.
“As regards energy infrastructure, for instance, the Kingdom now has 4.1 GW of installed renewable capacity. It is continuing to roll out its strategy plan to increase the share of renewable energy to over 52% of its national electricity mix by 2030,” recalled the Sovereign.
king Mohammed VI also noted that the motorway network is now 2,000 km long, connecting all cities with more than 400,000 inhabitants. “This network is expected to span 3,000 km by 2030,” said the Sovereign.
Furthermore, the high-speed rail line has made Morocco the first country in Africa to launch a train traveling 320km per hour, added the king, stressing that with the Tanger Med port complex, the Kingdom has positioned itself, for several years now, among the world’s top 20 hubs in logistics connectivity, forming the first industrial free zone in Africa.
Together with Morocco’s major advances in infrastructure development, a series of structural reforms have been implemented over the past two decades, which are meant to reduce the risks of fiscal and external vulnerability, in addition to putting the Moroccan economy on a sustainable path to strong, inclusive growth, underlined the Sovereign.
This investment dynamic, the king noted, should be further consolidated by the new Investment Charter, which channels investment towards the country’s strategic priorities and offers, at the same time, an attractive incentive framework.
“Our ultimate goal is to make sure private investment accounts for two-thirds of total investment in the country by 2035,” wrote the Sovereign in the message, highlighting the crucial role the private sector is expected to play in order to make a decisive contribution to the economic recovery dynamic in the Kingdom.