France’s Economy Minister Expected in Morocco on Friday

French Economy and Finance Minister, Bruno Le Maire, will visit Morocco on Jan.31 for talks with several Moroccan officials on cooperation prospects and partnership between the two longstanding friends and allies touting strong exceptional ties.

The visit comes after the 14th France-Morocco high-level meeting held in Paris on Dec.19th during which an economic forum was organized by MEDEF (French employers’ association) and its Moroccan counterpart (CGEM).

 

These meetings, which were crowned with the signing of several cooperation accords in various sectors, were held following the controversial remarks made by Bruno Le Maire who had criticized the decision of French carmakers Renault and PSA to move some of their productions overseas, including to Morocco.

French President Emmanuel Macron is also expected to pay a two-day visit to the North African Kingdom on February 12-13. This will be Macron’s second visit to Morocco after his first official trip in November 2018, when he inaugurated with King Mohammed VI, the Tangier-Casablanca high-speed train.

French media reported recently that during Macron’s visit, the two countries will announce armament contracts worth €400 million that Morocco has sealed with different French arms manufacturers.

The two countries will also discuss the participation of French companies in the extension of the high-speed train railway as far as Agadir.

France remains among Morocco’s major trading partners. There are nearly 900 subsidiaries of French companies installed in the Kingdom, employing about 100,000 employees. As Morocco becomes gateway to foreign investment in Africa, Moroccan-French and African partnership gained momentum.

The two countries are also partners in the fight against terrorism, illegal migration, drugs trafficking and work together towards enhancing regional and international peace and stability.