Rabat Hosts High-Level Ministerial Conference on Middle-Income Countries

The High-Level Ministerial Conference on Middle-Income Countries is being held on Monday and Tuesday in Rabat, with the participation of 32 countries, including many represented at ministerial level, and 23 United Nations development agencies and other international and regional institutions. Under the theme “Solutions to Address Development Challenges of Middle-Income Countries in a Changing World”, this high-level Ministerial Conference is part of the Kingdom of Morocco’s presidency of the Group of Friends of Middle-Income Countries within the United Nations framework, which it has held since 2023, and its continued advocacy of the interests of developing countries, under the far-sighted vision of His Majesty King Mohammed VI, in favor of an active and supportive multilateralism. Organized on the initiative of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, African Cooperation and Moroccan Expatriates, jointly with the United Nations Economic Commission for Africa and the United Nations Development Programme, the Conference began its work on Monday with a meeting of experts focusing on key themes for middle-income countries, such as South-South and triangular cooperation, climate financing, innovative sources of financing and the middle-income trap. The Conference’s Ministerial Segment, scheduled for Tuesday, will address the challenges and opportunities facing middle-income countries, with the participation of senior representatives of the UN Regional Economic Commissions, including ESCWA Executive Secretary Rola Dashti, ECA Deputy Executive Secretary Hanan Morsy, UNCTAD Deputy Secretary-General, Pedro Manuel Moreno. It will also provide a further opportunity to deepen the debate on how the United Nations Development System, regional and international institutions and other development partners can support these countries in meeting the challenges of economic and social development. The High-Level Ministerial Conference on Middle-Income Countries, which aims to identify new and innovative approaches to give fresh impetus to cooperation with middle-income countries, will be attended by the Deputy Secretary-General of the United Nations, Amina J. Mohammed, and the President of ECOSOC, Paula Narváez Ojeda. The Conference will also be attended by Cape Verde’s Minister of Foreign Affairs, Rui Alberto De Figueiredo Soares, Cameroon’s Minister of External Relations, Mbella Mbella Lejeune, Eswatini’s Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation, Pholile Shakantu, Comoro’s Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation, in charge of the Francophonie and the Diaspora, Dhoihir Dhoulkamal, Gabon’s Minister of Foreign Affairs, in charge of Sub-regional Integration and Gabonese Living Abroad, Régis Onanga Ndiaye, and Nigeria’s Minister of Foreign Affairs, Yusuf Maitama Tuggar.