The EU and Morocco are strengthening their strategic partnership in the digital field by launching the “EU-Morocco Digital Dialogue” for businesses, start-ups and researchers, while fostering links between EU AI Factories and Moroccan AI innovation ecosystem.
This Digital Dialogue has been launched on the sidelines of GITEX Africa taking place in Marrakesh (7-9 April). It reflects a shared vision to unlock the potential of digital, data and artificial intelligence (AI) solutions, supporting a digital economy and society at the service of people.
This move will enable cooperation in areas such as AI, support for digital start-ups, secure and trusted digital infrastructure, as well as interoperability of public digital infrastructure solutions such as the digital wallets.
The Dialogue was launched by Moroccan Minister Delegate in charge of Digital Transition Amal El Fallah Seghrouchni and Executive Vice-Pdt. of EU Commission for Tech Sovereignty, Security and Democracy, Henna Virkkunen.
The EU-Morocco Digital Dialogue will focus on facilitating the rollout of secure, trusted digital networks and infrastructure to support cooperation in areas such as AI and Digital Public Infrastructure.
The goal includes the exchange of best practices and support for the deployment of AI compute infrastructures and ecosystems. The Initiative also seeks to establish advanced cooperation between Moroccan AI research institutes and EU AI Factories, including by facilitating cooperation on research and innovation projects, resource and knowledge sharing.
In addition to Launching EU–Morocco Digital Dialogue, the EU Commissioner Virkkunen and Minister Seghrouchni signed an administrative arrangement on AI ecosystems for innovation.
The first operational implementation of this agreement is taking shape. Four European supercomputing centres (BSC, CINECA, GENCI and LUMI) have signed a letter of intent with Mohammed VI Polytechnic University, which hosts the most powerful supercomputer on the African continent.
This cooperation will build on the successful landing of the Medusa Submarine Cable System in Nador, Morocco, and the ongoing support to the ‘Digital Morocco 2030′ strategy for the rollout of digital public services.
The Digital Dialogue may also pave the way for the concrete cooperation programmes currently under discussion between the EU and Morocco. These would support the implementation of the ‘Digital Morocco 2030′ strategy, the administrative arrangement signed today, and Morocco’s start-up ecosystem.
