Moroccan Investment and Trade Promotion Conference opens in Yinchuan

The Moroccan Investment and Trade Promotion Conference is held in Yingchuan, Ningxia Hui autonomous region on August 19, 2021. [Photo/chinadaily.com.cn]

On August 19, the Moroccan Investment and Trade Promotion Conference, one of the events of the 5th China-Arab States Expo, was held in Yingchuan, Ningxia Hui autonomous region.

China and Morocco signed a memorandum of intent on information and communication technology personnel training, financing, financial services and other related fields. 

Morocco is one of the guest countries of the conference, with it being the first time that a dual guest country mechanism had been set up for the conference. 

The mechanism plays a positive role in expanding bilateral economic and trade cooperation, demonstrating the advantages of economic and trade investment, and achieving mutually-benefit results. It also highlights the internationalization of the expo.

Since 2012, the United Arab Emirates, Kuwait, Jordan and Egypt have all served as guest countries respectively, having successfully organized a series of activities with China. 

In recent years, the economic and trade cooperation between China and Morocco has been well developed. The two countries have established a strategic partnership, and Morocco has become the first Maghreb country to sign a memorandum of understanding to jointly build the "Belt and Road".

Morocco's superior geographical location, stable political environment and perfect economic governance system provide favorable conditions to further economic and trade cooperation between China and Morocco, and also serve as a bridge for Chinese enterprises to explore African and European markets.

In 2020, the bilateral trade volume between China and Morocco reached US $4.764 billion, an increase of 2 percent against the shrinking trend.

Chang Jinhong, director of the Ningxia Expo Bureau, said that China and Morocco have a long established friendship, and in recent years, the two sides have been expanding cooperation.

Signing ceremony of the Moroccan Investment and Trade Promotion Conference [Photo/chinadaily.com.cn]

Ningxia will take advantage of the platform of the 5th China-Arab States Expo to deepen cooperation in the fields of cultural tourism, modern agriculture and desertification control, Chang said.

In the future, with the platform of the China-Arab States Technology Transfer Center, the two sides can jointly discuss technology transfer and cooperation in modern facility agriculture, and can jointly implement high-efficiency ecological agriculture projects, such as high-quality vegetable and grain planting.

"At the same time, exchanges and cooperation can be carried out in the field of comprehensive control of desertification land, and ecological engineering projects of desert control and resource development can also be implemented" , Chang added.

Participants at the event include Moroccan government agencies, business associations and enterprises, and Chinese central State-owned enterprises, large enterprises in relevant provinces and Ningxia enterprises interested in economic and trade cooperation with Morocco.

The conference was sponsored by the Ministry of Commerce of China, the Ministry of Industry, Trade, Investment and the Digital Economy of Morocco, and the People's Government of the Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region, and was co-hosted by the Moroccan Investment and Export Development Agency and the Ningxia Expo Bureau (CCPIT Ningxia Sub-Council).