Belgium, (Brussels Morning Newspaper) European Commissioner for Neighbourhood and Enlargement Olivér Várhelyi announced cooperation programmes with Morocco on Thursday.
The Commission noted in a statement that the programmes are worth some 624 million euros and will help Morocco to phase out fossil fuels, manage illegal migration and implement a range of reforms.
Approximately 130 million euros will go towards social protection, including access to universal health care, pensions and unemployment support.
Additional 115 million euros or so will support agriculture, green entrepreneurship and social protection of workers, while roughly 152 million will help Morocco to strengthen border control and crack down on human trafficking.
The programme aimed at the digitalisation of public services is worth roughly 50 million euros, with the EC stressing that it will also improve transparency and allow citizens to monitor the quality of public services.
The Commission pointed out that 51 million euros will go towards the Moroccan National Strategy for Financial Inclusion to provide access to finance to select groups including women, youth and people living in rural areas.
Focus of cooperation
The EC stressed that the partnership with Morocco focuses on climate change, economic development, security, migration and mobility, among other.
It reminded that the EU has been cooperating with Morocco on border management and migration since 2004, adding that the two sides strengthened their cooperation in 2013, 2018 and 2022.
Várhelyi noted “less than a year after my visit to Morocco where I presented our New Agenda for the Mediterranean and our Economic and Investment Plan, I’m proud to announce that the EU-Morocco strategic partnership delivers for our shared prosperity and stability.”
“Morocco is a key beneficiary of our cooperation and a unique partner of the EU,” he added and concluded “therefore, we support innovative bilateral and trilateral cooperation in the areas of agriculture, digital, energy and water sector.”
The EC pointed out that, as part of efforts to help Morocco manage illegal migration, the EU will provide the country with 152 million euro over four years.
The body concluded that EU’s Economic and Investment Plan is expected to mobilise roughly 8 billion euro in investments in Morocco by the end of 2026, of which the EU will provide 1.68 billion in grants.
