RABAT, 27th July, 2024 (WAM) – The United Arab Emirates and the Kingdom of Morocco have finalized the terms of the Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA), initiating a new chapter in mutually beneficial trade and investment relations between the two countries.
The conclusion of the negotiations was confirmed by the signing of a joint statement by the Kingdom of Morocco’s Minister of State for Foreign Trade, Thani bin Ahmed Al Zeyoudi, and Minister of Industry and Trade, Riad Mezour.
Once implemented, the UAE-Morocco CEPA will facilitate the free flow of goods and services by reducing or eliminating tariffs, removing unnecessary barriers to trade, improving market access for services, enhancing customs harmonization, and establishing flexible rules of origin for goods.
It will also establish a platform for investment and private sector collaboration in priority areas such as renewable energy, tourism, infrastructure, mining, food security, transport, logistics and ICT.
The two countries are set to earn US$1.3 billion in non-oil trade in 2023, 30 percent higher than 2022 and 83 percent higher than the 2019 record. The UAE is the largest Arab investor in Morocco, with more than US$15 billion invested in various strategic projects.
Dr. Thani bin Ahmed Al Zeyoudi welcomed the latest step in the UAE’s foreign policy: “The UAE-Morocco Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement is a valuable addition to our CEPA program. Our brotherly countries already enjoy strong bilateral economic relations and this agreement will allow us to further develop areas of mutual interest, particularly in tourism, energy, manufacturing and agriculture, creating long-term prosperity for our two peoples. Morocco is one of the largest and most competitive economies in Africa and we look forward to working together to create new opportunities for the private sector.”
Riad Mezour, Minister of Commerce and Industry of the Kingdom of Morocco, said: “Today, together with my brother Thani bin Ahmed Al Zeyoudi, Minister of State for Foreign Trade, I signed a joint declaration announcing the conclusion of negotiations on a Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement between our two countries. This agreement is part of the implementation of the Declaration signed by His Majesty King Mohamed VI and President H.H. Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan in Abu Dhabi on December 4, 2023, and aims to establish an innovative new and robust partnership between our two brotherly countries.”
“The agreement, which strengthens the legal basis between the two countries, aims to open up new opportunities to improve the level of joint cooperation in the economic and commercial fields and support the development of trade and investment,” he added.
Morocco is the sixth largest economy on the African continent. Its GDP is expected to be US$152.4 billion in 2023, growing by a further 3.5% in 2024. Agriculture remains the largest employer, but the services sector is the largest contributor at 54% of GDP, and the industry sector at 23%.
The UAE’s CEPA program aims to increase the country’s non-oil trade to AED 4 trillion by expanding ties with strategically important markets around the world. In 2023, the UAE’s non-oil goods trade is expected to reach a record high of US$710 billion, up 12.6% from 2022 and 34.7% from 2021. Morocco is the latest African country to sign CEPA terms with the UAE, following Mauritius, Kenya and the Republic of Congo.