‘Morocco most attractive economy for investments into Africa’

Kate Baaba Hudson Africa Aug - 02 - 2018 , 13:05

Moroccc is the most attractive economy for investments into the African continent in 2018, according to the latest Africa Investment Index 2018.

The country is also the second African investor in the continent and the continent’s first investor in the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) region.

“In tangible numbers, it means that more than 63 per cent of Moroccan foreign investments are oriented towards the continent, where Morocco private sector was very active in more than 25 countries,” the Ambassador of the Kingdom of Morocco to Ghana, Mr Mohammed Farahat, has announced.

He was delivering his address at a dinner in Accra to mark the 19th anniversary of the ascension to the throne of His Majesty King Mohammed VI of the Kingdom of Morocco.

The function was attended by ministers of state, members of parliament (MPs), the Dean and members of the diplomatic corps, the Moroccan Community, religious and traditional leaders.

Mr Farahat noted that the Moroccan economic presence in Africa, particularly sought to combine both major regional projects and small projects with an effective socio-economic impact.

The ambassador, therefore, mentioned the Atlantic Pipeline Project to connect Nigeria gas fields to European markets through Morocco and other 11 West African countries.

He referred to the construction of large fertiliser plants on the continent to serve as green growth drivers and food security guarantors in their respective sub-regions.

“These major projects are backed up by a multitude of medium scale projects with the specificity of having a greater socio-economic impact,” he noted.

Bilateral partnership

Ambassador Farahat said Morocco and Ghana urgently needed to promote a bilateral economic partnership based on the efforts of Moroccan and Ghanaian private sector players, as well as to facilitate efforts to develop and grow existing business capacities and explore new opportunities in transportation, trade, tourism, mining and energy.

He said: “Regardless of past achievements, it is now time for both countries to move up a notch to more ambitious levels and consolidate progress made in recent times.”

“Trade between our two countries does not make the most of the full potential offered by our two complementary economies,” the ambassador stated.

Mr Farahat disclosed Moroccan government scholarships for Ghanaian students to further their studies in Morocco since 2005. This scholarship programme the Moroccan Government created since 2005 has more than 30,500 able minds, focused toward creating better future for themselves and their respective countries.

Currently, he said out of the 181 Ghanaian students who were pursuing their studies in Morocco for the 2017-2018 academic year, 170 of them had scholarships.

He was happy to note that Morocco and Ghana shared the same values and principles regarding the fight against corruption and the respect for individual and collective freedoms, not to mention the continuous endeavour of Morocco and Ghana to combat extremism and terrorism and all kinds of transnational criminal activities, mainly in the Sahel region.

Appreciation

The ambassador expressed gratitude to Ghana for the support towards the victorious return of Morocco to the African Union and to the Organisation’s Peace and Security Council

He said, “Ghana’s favourable position to Morocco’s bid to join the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) was highly appreciated.

Deputy Minister

Responding to the ambassador’s address, a Deputy Minister of Health, Mr Kingsley Aboagye-Gyedu, observed that the level of brotherliness and cordial relations between Ghana and Morocco reached a significant level in February 2015 with the inauguration of the Ghana-Morocco Permanent Joint Commission Cooperation (PJCC) in Rabat and befittingly demonstrated through an official visit by King Mohammed VI of Morocco.

That state visit culminated in the signing of 25 agreements in various fields, including agriculture, finance, trade and industry.

Mr Aboagye-Gyedu commended Morocco for accepting to host the African Migration Observatory, as King Mohammed VI is a strong campaigner of issues relating to the Global Compact for Migration.