Whatever the evolution of relations between the two countries, Emmanuel Macron’s visit to Rabat now fuels the hope of bringing the kingdom into the big leagues. The French Head of State, who thus resumes contact with Morocco, was welcomed with all honors. Following in the footsteps of Jacques Chirac, he is directly banking on the kingdom to seal a total reconciliation. To chase away all the clouds that had accumulated between Paris and Rabat, the French President had chosen to respond to Morocco’s demand by recognizing its sovereignty over the Sahara. He was well paid in return, as evidenced by the harvest of agreements signed in Rabat.
It was written. There are dates that mark the history of a country. 1956: France gave Morocco back “its freedom” after an unjust and turbulent protectorate. 2024: France ends up recognizing the Moroccan nature of the Sahara and is preparing to return to the kingdom important archives on this artificial file. The red carpet rolled out for President Emmanuel Macron testifies to the importance of this shift in relations between the two countries. These are now two nations with peaceful relations that face each other and look to the future together.
Upon his arrival, welcomed with honors in the company of leading personalities who accompanied him, the Head of State immediately signed with His Majesty King Mohammed VI, the “Declaration relating to the Reinforced Exceptional Partnership”, a milestone important to definitively seal the resumption of bilateral strategic dialogue between the two nations. To ensure the rigorous monitoring of this exceptional partnership, the two Heads of State decided to create a bilateral strategic committee, which will play a key role in the continued evaluation and deepening of this cooperation. This committee will have the mission of guiding and supervising the efforts deployed, ensuring the implementation of projects meeting the common interests of the two nations. Its management will be based on regular exchanges and concerted management, intended to sustain the results and maximize the impact of this exceptional partnership which now includes all-out cooperation on the Sahara and regional development. Hence the care taken by Emmanuel Macron not to let the opportunity pass without recalling the French position concerning the southern provinces, affirming that “the present and future of the Sahara are part of the framework of Moroccan sovereignty. » An “Exceptional Strengthened Partnership” which testifies to the common desire of these two nations to build a shared future, not only in the service of their peoples, but also for the stability, prosperity and development of the African continent and the region. Atlantic. “Today in Rabat, we are opening a new chapter in the long history between Morocco and France for the next generation,” commented Emmanuel Macron on years ago, it was time to turn the page with a visit with great fanfare to celebrate the improvement.
An improvement which benefits both parties, as evidenced by the harvest of agreements and conventions signed upon the arrival of the diplomatic, ministerial elite and the French business world in Rabat. Without a doubt, there will have been no shortage of highlights during this historic visit, whether it was the famous speech to Parliament which was the perfect opportunity to return to the historical links between the two countries and the Sahara issue. Before the deputies, Emmanuel Macron solemnly mentioned, on Tuesday October 29, that “our operators and our companies will support the development of these territories through investments, sustainable and solidarity initiatives for the benefit of local populations”. Let us not also forget the meeting with Prime Minister Aziz Akhannouch as well as the Presidents of the two Chambers or the be to be meetings between French ministers and their Moroccan counterparts on common themes such as the fight against illegal immigration of which the minister French Interior Minister, Bruno Retailleau, made his hobby horse, sat down at the table with Abdelouafi Laftit to discuss the management of the returns of Moroccans in an irregular situation incarcerated in France. But it is the economic aspect which has attracted the most attention from observers. In total, the commercial contracts, investments and loans concluded concern an amount of “up to ten billion euros”, announced the Élysée, relating to rail transport, renewable energies which Morocco is firmly determined to becoming a champion, water, the port sector or even the energy transition.
In this regard, the agreement concerning a Memorandum of Understanding relating to the creation of a Morocco investment accelerator is very interesting. This is a Memorandum of Understanding of nearly 3 billion Dirhams of capital relating to the creation of a Morocco-France investment accelerator. Equal partnership aimed at stimulating investment throughout Morocco, including the southern provinces. Creation of a 50/50 joint venture dedicated to sustainable infrastructure, with capital of 300 million euros, the ninth agreement, relating to a Declaration of Intent relating to the strengthening of cooperation in civil protection . In accordance with this agreement, the signatories clearly intend to develop their bilateral cooperation in the field of civil protection, through the exchange of good practices and the sharing of experiences on forecasting systems during civil security crises, the establishment of joint working groups, and the development of structuring projects. Setting the bar very high in many sectors, the French Head of State was accompanied by all the political and economic elite of France. For those who do not yet know, it should be remembered that all CAC 40 companies are today firmly established in Morocco, which demonstrates the attractiveness and potential of the Moroccan platform for investments in key sectors and which also explains why all the bosses of the major French groups wanted to be on the trip.
Thus, of the 22 agreements which relate to various sectors, a good package benefited bosses on both sides of the Mediterranean. Henri-Poupart Lafarge, the CEO of Alstom with the lucrative supply of high-speed trainsets and their support elements which will be supplied to the ONCF. At the same time, the CEO of the ONCF Mohamed Rabie Khlie also initialed an assistance contract between the company Sistra Egis and the ONCF and at the same time, a contract for the supply of track switches between the ONCF and Vossloh Cogifer. For the green hydrogen sector where Morocco is a leader, it was Patrick Pouyané, CEO of Total Energies, who signed the agreement initialed on one side by the Minister Delegate in charge of Investment, Convergence and the Evaluation of public policies, Karim Zidane and on the Moroccan side by the Minister of Energy Transition and Sustainable Development, Leila Benali and the Minister of the Interior, Abdelouafi Laftit. Safran is also consolidating its presence in the kingdom with a contract signed for the establishment of an aircraft engine maintenance and repair site. The boss of Engie leaves with a development agreement with the OCP group in the field of Energy Transition signed by Mostafa Terrab and Catherine MacGregor. Rodolphe Saadé, great friend of Morocco, made a nice catch with the memorandum of understanding signed between CMA-CGM and Tanger Med. In reality, the forty business leaders who made the trip to Rabat not only had the objective of leaving with a few signed contracts in due form, but they were also there to plead a “sort of principle of ‘exclusivity’ which allows them to enter into a lasting partnership. The opportunity to promote a logic of “co-location” since the French business world became aware that Morocco has become a hub between Europe and Africa, as evidenced by the successes of French groups in the automobile and aeronautics. On the eve of Macron’s visit, Philippe Delleur, Vice-President of Alstom and permanent delegate of the strategic committee for the rail sector, did not hide his desire to advocate for the creation of a subcontracting ecosystem. much, like what Airbus, Renault and PSA have done. At the end of his state trip to Morocco, Emmanuel Macron can be proud to have won his bet: to show that France was still capable of reconnecting at the highest level with France’s first friendly country in Africa. It thus restores the reputation of a great nation, of this grateful France, the one which on June 18, 1945, during the parade of fighters in Paris, Mohammed V was made a companion of the Liberation at the hands of General de Gaulle, in recognition of the sacrifices made by its people to support the war effort of
France.
