2/3/2007
Morocco: Commission Proposes more than €650 million in Support of Reforms

Benita Ferrero-Waldner, European Commissioner for External Relations and Neighbourhood Policy took part in a seminar on 2 March designed to examine the possibilities for reinforcing partnership in areas such as political co-operation, security issues, economic relations and civil society between the EU and Morocco.  Entitled "Morocco and the EU: Towards an Advanced Statute in the Euro-Mediterranean Association," the seminar was organised by the European Institute of the Mediterranean with the collaboration of the Spanish Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Co-operation.

At the same time the Commissioner presented a proposed €654 million assistance package for Morocco to support implementation of the EU-Morocco Action Plan, prepared in the context of the European Neighbourhood Policy. This bilateral aid will be topped up by loans from the European Investment Bank and other financial programmes. The package represents an increase of close to 20% compared to the annual average during 1995-2006.

In Barcelona Commissioner Ferrero-Waldner also met the Deputy Moroccan Minister responsible for External Relations and Co-operation, Taïb Fassi Fihri, with whom she discussed EU-Morocco relations, the European Neighbourhood Policy and the new assistance package.

"Morocco is engaged in a process of very ambitious reform stemming from its own vision of modernisation and development. The benefits of reform in Morocco are already emerging: stronger growth, greater foreign direct investment, and higher employment. But we are aware that reform is difficult and costly, and we fully appreciate the scope of the remaining challenges. For this reason, the EU will scale up its efforts to assist Morocco in its ongoing reform, and we intend to provide increased financial resources to support Morocco's implementation of our joint ENP Action Plan, concentrating on common priorities like education, health, energy, environment and the development of the private sector” stated Commissioner Ferrero-Waldner.