Morocco and the European Union signed today, at the headquarters of the European Commission in Brussels, the exchange of letters amending the Agricultural Agreement between the two parties.
This agreement, which was signed on the Moroccan side by Moroccan Ambassador to the EU, Ahmed Réda Chami, will be provisionally implemented immediately, pending the finalization of internal procedures on both sides.
It is important to note that under this agreement, which confirms the strength of the Morocco-EU partnership based on expanded multidimensional cooperation, agricultural products from the southern provinces will benefit from the same preferential access to the European market as those from the rest of the Kingdom, in accordance with the Morocco-EU Association Agreement.
In this regard, the agreement introduces technical adjustments designed to facilitate access to products and promote them, particularly in terms of consumer information through labeling that mentions the regions of production in the south of the Kingdom – “Laayoune-Sakiat el Hamra” and “Dakhla-Oued Eddahab.” The agreement thus confirms that the conditions for access to the European market for products from the north will apply to products from the Moroccan Sahara.
Morocco has concluded this agreement not only because it serves the economic interests of the Kingdom, but also because it respects national fundamentals. As highlighted by the Moroccan Minister of Foreign Affairs in his statement yesterday, this text reiterates the EU’s support for Morocco’s serious and credible efforts in its southern provinces and underscores the positions of many EU member states expressing their support for the Moroccan autonomy initiative, as part of the momentum generated by His Majesty King Mohammed VI.
Moreover the signing of this agreement by the EU confirms the interest of major powers in economic activities in the Moroccan Sahara and their willingness to encourage trade and investment in the region, with a view to making the Sahara a bridge between Europe and Africa, between the Mediterranean and the Atlantic.
This fact was confirmed, for example, by last week’s statement from the United States and by the Morocco-France Economic Forum scheduled to take place in Dakhla on October 9. The action planned by the UK Export Finance agency is another example of this fact.
This is therefore not a political agreement but a sectoral, commercial, and operational agreement that reinforces the long-standing and solid strategic partnership between Morocco and the EU.
Morocco is a credible partner with which the EU conducts most of its trade in Africa and the Arab world, with an annual value exceeding €60 billion, including industrial products, equipment, and agricultural products.
