Cooperation in Agriculture, Renewable Energy at Heart of Moroccan-Chilean Talks

The means to bolster cooperation between Morocco and Chile in the fields of agriculture and renewable energies were at the center of talks between a Moroccan parliamentary delegation and officials of the South American country, Friday in Santiago. The Speaker of the House of Advisors (Upper House), Naama Mayara, held a meeting with the Minister of Agriculture, Esteban Valenzuela, focused on ways to strengthen agricultural cooperation between the two countries, in light of the current international context that requires efforts to ensure food security. Highlighting the strengths of Morocco’s agricultural sector and programs launched to promote and develop this sector, Mayara said that during his meetings with the speakers of the Senate and the House of Representatives of Chile, he proposed the creation of a parliamentary economic forum that would strengthen investment opportunities and trade between the Kingdom and the South American country. The meeting was an opportunity to discuss ways to increase and diversify the volume of trade, the Chilean Minister of Agriculture told the Moroccan news channel M24. The scientific techniques used to develop agriculture in semi-arid areas and the creation of academies of agricultural cooperatives, as well as mechanisms for preserving food security, were also among the topics discussed at the meeting, he added. Praising the successful experiences of Morocco in many sectors, the Chilean official described the future of cooperation between the Kingdom and Chile as promising, since the economies of both countries are complementary. In similar remarks following his meeting with the Moroccan delegation, Energy Minister Claudio Huepe said that Chile wants to strengthen cooperation in the field of renewable energy and green hydrogen, suggesting the creation of technical committees to identify priority areas and opportunities for cooperation between the two countries. During the talks, which were attended by Morocco’s Ambassador to Chile, Kenza El Ghali, the speaker of the Upper House stressed that economic and trade cooperation between the two countries is called to rise to the level of the excellent political relations, stressing that both sides have all the assets and opportunities to consolidate prosperity and growth at all levels. Since the beginning of this week, the Moroccan delegation has held a series of meetings with several government officials and parliamentarians, as well as with members of civil society, to develop bilateral relations within the framework of South-South cooperation.