The Minister of Economy and Finance, Mr. Nizar Baraka headed Friday, December 14th, 2012 at the Ministry, the signing ceremony of three financing agreements with the European Investment Bank (EIB).
During the ceremony, the Vice-President of the EIB, Mr. Philippe de Fontaine Vive, together with Mr. Ohmane Fassi-Fihri, the Director General of the National Company of Motorways of Morocco, signed a loan agreementamounting toEUR 240 million to finance the " El Jadida-Safi Highway " project and signed with Mr. Ali Fassi-Fihri, the Director General of the National Office for Electricity and Drinking Water, loan agreements of an amount of EUR 180 million to finance the "Electrical Networks III" project and 20 million Euros to finance the National Sanitation Programme (NAP).
Were present at the signing ceremony the Minister of Equipment and Transport, Mr. Abdelaziz Rabbah, the Minister of Energy, Mines, Water and Environment, Mr. Fouad Douiri and the Ambassador, Head of the European Union Delegation in Morocco.
In his speech, Mr. Nizar Baraka welcomed the relations linking Morocco and the European Union as well as its funders including the EIB. In this regard, he specified that with the signing of these three agreements, Morocco reached a record level of its commitments with respect to the EIB, stating that this achievementrepresents the confidence of EIB and the European Union in the development and progress being made by the Kingdom of Morocco.
Speaking after the signing ceremony, Mr. Philippe de Fontaine Vive stressed that the objective is to develop modern, sustainable and profitable infrastructuresin key sectors such as transport, energy and water. He added that this financial commitment closes an exceptional year for a total amount of almost $ 1 million, more than 11 billion dirhams in response tothe Kingdom?s economic priorities. As for the Vice-President of the EIB, this record year represents clearlya long-lasting, dynamic and ambitious partnershiplinking the EIB and Morocco.
More than a dozen major projects were able to be funded in 2012, in diverse areas as transport infrastructures including the extension of rural roads, industry, agriculture, technological innovation, solar energy, as well as the funding of Ouarzazate project for which the EIB was the leading donor.