A delegation from the Ministry of Economy and Finance, led by Mr. Mohammed Tarik BCHIR, Director of the Treasury and External Finance, took part in the proceedings of the 2026 African Caucus Meeting, held from 6 to 8 July 2026 in Banjul, Republic of The Gambia, under the theme: “Increasing the Value Added of Africa’s Natural Resources and Developing Competitive Regional Value Chains to Foster Resilient, Inclusive and Sustainable Growth.”
The opening ceremony of this event was marked by the participation of the President of the Republic of the Gambia, as well as several high-ranking African dignitaries, including, in particular, the Prime Minister of Guinea-Bissau and the President of the African Development Bank Group.
The event featured several thematic panels bringing together mainly African Ministers of Finance, Governors of Central Banks, as well as representatives of international financial institutions and multilateral development banks (MDBs).
The discussions focused on two main areas: (i) the local processing of natural resources to create greater value added, employment and industrialization, and (ii) the development of competitive regional value chains to strengthen Africa’s economic integration.
The discussions highlighted the importance of strengthening the support provided by the World Bank Group and the IMF to industrialization policies, regional infrastructure and human capital development. They also underscored the need to continue the reform of the international financial architecture in order to improve access to concessional financing and increase the lending capacity of MDBs.
In this context, and during the high-level panel dedicated to strengthening human capital and skills development, Mr. BCHIR emphasized the importance of reinforcing support for African countries in expanding social protection coverage, as an essential lever for improving human capital and achieving more inclusive growth. In this regard, he highlighted the progress made by the Kingdom of Morocco, under the High Guidance of His Majesty King Mohammed VI, may God Assist Him, through the nationwide social protection reform.
At the conclusion of the Caucus proceedings, the African Governors examined the draft Memorandum to be submitted to the President of the World Bank Group and the Managing Director of the IMF during the Annual Meetings of these two institutions, scheduled for October 2026 in Bangkok. This document sets out the main African recommendations aimed at strengthening the support provided by the Bretton Woods Institutions for development financing and the economic transformation of the continent.
The drafting session of the Memorandum was marked by the active participation of the Moroccan delegation, which proposed the inclusion of several paragraphs to incorporate recent international and African initiatives, in line with the objectives of the document.
On the sidelines of the African Caucus proceedings, Mr. BCHIR held a meeting with Mrs. Mavis OWUSU-GYAMFI, President and Chief Executive Officer of the African Center for Economic Transformation (ACET). The discussions provided an opportunity to review the achievements and prospects for cooperation between the Kingdom of Morocco and ACET. They also focused on ACET’s “Africa-Led Borrower Coordination” initiative, which aims to establish an African borrower coordination platform designed to strengthen the exchange of experiences, peer learning and the sharing of best practices in public debt management in relations with international financial institutions and creditors. In this regard, both parties agreed to continue discussions on this initiative, taking into account Morocco’s recognized expertise in the field of debt management.
Finally, it was announced that the next edition of the African Caucus will be held in South Africa in 2027.