Morocco, under the High Leadership of His Majesty King Mohammed VI, is committed to the principles of South-South cooperation and African solidarity and is committed to continuing its actions to support multilateral efforts and to promoting initiatives that embody the collective motto of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), “the atom for peace and development”, indicated, Wednesday, the ambassador, permanent representative of Morocco to international organizations in Vienna, Azzeddine Farhane.
In his intervention during the Ministerial Conference on Nuclear Science, Technology and Applications and the Technical Cooperation Program, Mr. Farhane stressed that Morocco remains “fully committed” to continuing to share, either in a bilateral framework or in cooperation with the IAEA, its experience with its partners as well as with African countries with a view to promoting the use of nuclear applications, science and technology for peaceful purposes.
“The safe and secure use of nuclear applications is a priority shared by Morocco and the IAEA in Africa,” said the diplomat.
He noted that Morocco has developed, thanks to the support of the IAEA, national expertise in promoting the peaceful use of applications and technologies in a safe, secure and sustainable manner in many areas, including health. , nuclear medicine, nutrition, water, agriculture, industry, environment, energy, nuclear safety and security. In this context, Morocco is taking measures, in cooperation with the IAEA, aimed at strengthening national capacities and sharing expertise in the field of nuclear applications, particularly in partnership with African member states, said Mr. Farhane.
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Morocco thus organizes, each year, capacity building activities for experts from more than 40 IAEA member states in Africa, he recalled, arguing that hundreds of scholarships, scientific visits, Workshops, certifications, as well as expert missions on regulatory control and nuclear security for the authorities of African Member States, are organized each year. Reaffirming the central role of the IAEA in providing technical assistance to Member States to ensure the safe and secure use of nuclear applications, the diplomat praised the innovative and pragmatic flagship initiatives of the Agency’s Director General, Rafael Mariano Grossi, namely ZODIAC, NUTEC Plastics, Rays of Hope and Atoms4Food, which have provided a tangible and effective response to zoonotic diseases, marine pollution, cancer therapy and food safety.
As part of the implementation of these initiatives, cooperation between Morocco and the IAEA was strengthened and supported after Mr. Grossi’s official visit to Morocco in June 2022, recalled Mr. Farhane, adding that the Kingdom has taken concrete steps to develop an internationally recognized training infrastructure for peaceful nuclear applications. Thus, several Moroccan institutions contributed to the implementation of the general management’s flagship initiatives, such as the National Center for Nuclear Energy, Science and Technology (CNESTEN), the Moroccan Agency for Nuclear Safety and Security and radiological (AMSSNuR), the National Oncology Center of Rabat, the National Center for Scientific and Technical Research (CNRST).
Mr. Farhane also recalled the Kingdom’s continued support for the Zodiac initiative, which aims to strengthen capacities for detecting and combating infectious diseases transmitted from animals to humans (zoonoses) and which was adopted under the Moroccan presidency of the 64th General Conference of the IAEA. With the aim of strengthening the regional dimension of this initiative, Morocco organized, jointly with the IAEA, two weeks ago, the regional meeting in Rabat on the implementation of ZODIAC in Africa, which gave impetus to the implementation of this initiative, by strengthening the African network of national laboratories.
During this meeting, 31 African Member States participated and adopted a document establishing a clear roadmap aimed at strengthening the collaborative approach, coordination measures and synergistic interactions among African ZODIAC laboratories. As part of the same commitment, Morocco organized for the first time a high-level panel, with the participation of the Director General of the IAEA, on the theme “the role of nuclear technology in the fight against cervical cancer of the uterus in Africa”, which concluded on the need to strengthen the synergy, dynamics and complementarity between all stakeholders in the fight against cervical cancer in Africa, said the ambassador.
Morocco, which hosts an IAEA regional anchor center for cancer therapy, remains fully committed to supporting the “Rays of Hope” initiative, which aims to provide cancer care for all. and to compensate for the lack of radiotherapy in developing countries, assured Mr. Farhane. Furthermore, the use of nuclear technology for desalination and the production of drinking water is more crucial than ever, he said, noting that in this context, Morocco presented this year, as a signatory , a resolution submitted by the G77 and adopted by consensus at the 68th IAEA General Conference on the “Plan for economical production of drinking water using small and medium-sized nuclear reactors”.
This resolution highlights the need for continued strengthening of international cooperation in the planning and implementation of nuclear desalination programs, he said.
With MAP
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