Co-Development in Africa: Royal Initiatives Attest to Morocco’s Ability to Provide Solutions to Topical Challenges – FM –

The initiatives of His Majesty King Mohammed VI in favor of co-development in Africa and beyond attest to Morocco’s ability to provide solutions to the challenges of the day, said, Friday in New York, Minister of Foreign Affairs, African Cooperation and Moroccans Abroad, Nasser Bourita. “Morocco has launched a series of initiatives under the leadership of His Majesty the King on various issues linked in particular to Atlantic Africa and the Sahel countries,” the FM said, noting that the Kingdom, a “responsible, serious, and listened-to” country, has shown that it is in a position to provide answers to questions linked in particular to immigration, climate change, and sustainable development. In a statement to the press on the sidelines of the 79th session of the UN General Assembly, the Minister said that the Kingdom favors action over words when it comes to proposing solutions to topical problems and places its experience and achievements at the disposal of the international community’s collective effort. It was in this spirit that a high-level Moroccan delegation led by the Head of Government took part in this gathering of UN member states, in accordance with the High Royal Instructions, the minister added. Referring to the international initiative of HM the King to promote access to the Atlantic Ocean for the Sahel States, which was the subject of a meeting on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly, Bourita said that all the countries involved had reaffirmed their commitment and support for the initiative and emphasized its relevance to finding solutions to the region’s security, economic, and humanitarian challenges. For these countries, the royal initiative sees cooperation through the prism of action and reactivity rather than the logic of crisis, he said, adding that this support has prompted practical and concrete proposals for the operationalization of this strategy. This same spirit of active solidarity is also reflected in the Royal Initiative for African Atlantic States. A similar meeting was held on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly as part of the implementation of His Majesty the King’s instructions concerning this initiative, the minister pointed out. Marked by the total support of the participants, this meeting enabled action plans to be put in place in the fields of security, peace, the blue economy, and environmental protection in the Atlantic Ocean, he added, while recalling the royal vision for an integrated, inclusive and prosperous African Atlantic area. In the same vein, the official referred to the meeting of the member states of the Mano River Union, namely Côte d’Ivoire, the Republic of Guinea, Liberia, and Sierra Leone, noting that this meeting culminated in the signing of a roadmap intended to consolidate partnership relations in various fields. Another illustration of Morocco’s commitment to effective, mutually supportive South-South cooperation is the initiative on Middle Income Countries, which in turn was the focus of a meeting on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly, chaired by the Minister of Foreign Affairs, African Cooperation and Moroccans Abroad. In this respect, Bourita stated that Morocco, in line with Royal Instructions, aspires to unite these countries so that they can have a say in the decision-making process and have their priorities taken into account.  With regard to the Palestinian question, another priority of Moroccan diplomacy, the minister recalled Morocco’s position as expressed by His Majesty the King in His last speech on the occasion of Throne Day, calling in particular for an immediate ceasefire as a prelude to a political process leading to a definitive solution to the Middle East conflict. Regarding the humanitarian crisis, he said that Israel’s killings of children and women and the destruction of hospitals and schools were unacceptable and constantly denounced by Morocco. For the minister, this major UN event was also an opportunity to highlight the humanitarian support that His Majesty the King, Chairman of the Al-Quds Committee, has ordered to alleviate suffering in the region, as well as the Sovereign’s efforts to foster the conditions for a two-state political solution, with the establishment of a Palestinian state with East Al-Quds as its capital. In New York, the minister also held a series of bilateral meetings with officials from other African, Latin American, Caribbean and European countries with a view to strengthening South-South cooperation and diversifying partnerships.