OIC Summit, African countries underline strategic importance of African Atlantic Initiative launched by King Mohammed VI

The 15th Summit of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC), held in Banjul, capital of The Gambia, underlined the strategic importance of the “Atlantic African States” Initiative launched by King Mohammed VI.

In its Final Communiqué, the 15th OIC Summit welcomed the “Atlantic African States” Initiative launched by Morocco’s King as a process towards an African partnership aimed at strengthening ties of cooperation and integration between African countries bordering the Atlantic, and consequently promote peace, stability and shared prosperity in the region.

The Summit also commended the King’s initiative to promote access to the Atlantic Ocean for Sahel countries, and stressed the strategic importance of this initiative, which is in line with Morocco’s active solidarity with brotherly African countries in general, and the Sahel region in particular.

The initiative in favor of Sahel States was also commended by Burkina Faso’s Foreign Minister Karamoko Jean Marie Traoré.

In a statement to the press following a meeting on Saturday in Banjul with his Moroccan peer Nasser Bourita, Traoré said that Burkina Faso, “a landlocked country”, welcomed this Royal Initiative enabling Sahel countries to have access to the Atlantic Ocean.

Burkina Faso’s top diplomat said that his country is “interested in more ways than one” by this Royal Initiative, and underlined that the initiative’ s technical contours are currently being further revealed, and concern not only physical access, but also other types of facilities that landlocked countries need for their economies to perform well.

This initiative is perfectly in tune with the integration policies being implemented at West African level, but also within the Alliance of Sahel States (ASS), comprising Mali, Burkina Faso and Niger, added the Burkinabe Minister.

The official, who hailed the initiative, said that his country’s experts “will be ready” and that a consolidation meeting would soon be held to “try to define the contours” of the initiative.

Talks between the Burkinabe and Moroccan Foreign Ministers focused on strengthening bilateral relations, as well as on subjects of common interest and the situation in the sub-region, among others.

The meeting took place on the sidelines of the 15th Summit of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation, held in the Gambian capital, Banjul, May 4-5.

Bourita held talks with several other participating Foreign Ministers and officials. These include Foreign Ministers of Azerbaijan Jeyhun Bairamov, Türkiye Hakan Fidan, and Sudan Hussein Awad Ali.

Talks provided an opportunity to review Morocco’s relations with these countries, and to discuss issues of common interest.

The Moroccan minister also held talks with the Vice-Chairman of the Libyan Presidential Council, Moussa Al-Koni, and the Secretary General of the Digital Cooperation Organization, Dina Yahia.

Bourita also met on Saturday with Salem Al-Malik, Director General of the Islamic World Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (ICESCO), with whom he signed an Annex amending the Headquarters Agreement between this Organization and the Government of Morocco.

This is the first amendment to the agreement, 36 years after it was signed in 1988, under which the Kingdom of Morocco grants ISESCO and its staff a set of privileges.