Highlights

The meeting of the Minister with the French Minister for Foreign trade

13/12/2012
The meeting of the Minister with the French Minister for Foreign trade

The Minister of Economy and Finance Mr.Nizar Baraka,discussed Thursday, December 13th, 2012 in Rabat, with the French Minister for Foreign Trade, Mrs. Nicole Bricq on reforms undertaken by Morocco and France to boost their economic competitiveness.

The Minister, who welcomed the strategic partnership between Morocco and France, stressed that these reforms will allow French companies to cooperate more effectively with their Moroccan counterparts. "Morocco will be a platform for investment in Africa rather than a market. This will allow us to export our expertise", she added.

France is the first economic partner and the largest investor in the Kingdom. Some 750 French companies are doing business in Morocco, including 38 of the CAC 40 (Paris stock exchange index).

According to statistics of the Moroccan Ministry of Foreign Trade, Moroccan exports to France totaled more than 35 billion dirhams in 2011, while imports were valued at51 billion dirhams, representing a coverage rate of 70%. Mrs. Nicole Bricq is visiting Morocco among a French ministerial delegation led by the Prime Minister Mr. Jean-Marc Ayrault, to co-chair with Mr. Abdelillah Benkirane, Head of Government, the Moroccan-French 11thHigh Level Meeting , under the theme "France-Morocco: a youth serving partnership " as well as the signing of several agreements.

In Casablanca, the two heads of Government co-chaired, Wednesday, December 12th, 2012, the closing of Moroccan-French Businessmen Forum that ended by the signing of two loan agreements andMemoranda of Understandingin order to finance development projects in Morocco.

The delegation`s visit to Casablanca took place simultaneously withthe inauguration by His Majesty King Mohammed VI of the tramway line in the economic capital of the Kingdom, resulting from a Franco-Moroccan partnership.