French President Emmanuel Macron’s visit to Morocco this week resulted in 20 deals covering desalination, energy, rail and water management, as well as finance, banking, and education, the North Africa Post reports.
Among the agreements-in-principle, Alstom will supply up to 18 high-speed train cars.
The Moroccan rail network is rapidly expanding, with work on a 430km high-speed line about to get under way between Kenitra and Marrakech, via Rabat and Casablanca.
Another company to find work was energy supplier Engie, which came to an understanding with the Moroccan Phosphates Office, and also signed a renewables agreement with potential investments reaching €3.5bn.
Meanwhile, TotalEnergies signed a deal to develop green hydrogen production.
Morocco’s fragile water resources were boosted by a planned strategic partnership in the field of seawater desalination, signed by Abdelouafi Laftit, Morocco’s interior minister, and Estelle Brachlianoff, chief executive of water and waste engineer Veolia.
The French Development Agency signed a letter of intent to invest €100m in the development plan of the Casablanca region, which will contribute to the preparation for hosting the 2030 World Cup Final.
There was also an alliance between École Centrale Casablanca and the Écoles Centrale de France for the creation of five ecosystems of research, innovation and training to improve Morocco’s expertise in STEM subjects.
Macron’s visit follows an invitation by the king, and is being seen as an attempt to improve relations.
The main bone of contention is France’s perceived efforts to reduce immigration from Morocco, partly by halving the number of visas granted.
Another issue has been Macron’s negative stance on Morocco’s claim on the territory of Western Sahara, also claimed by the Algeria-backed Polisario Front.
Yesterday the French president got a standing ovation in the Moroccan parliament when he told lawmakers that he now backed Morocco’s claim.
The UN considers it to be a “non-self-governing territory”.
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