Virtual Magazine of Morocco on the Web
Morocco Week in Review 
July 31 2004

Congress Approves US, Morocco Free Trade Agreement Pact is the first with an African country, second with an Arab nation WASHINGTON, DC - 07/26/04 - Both houses of Congress have approved US-Morocco Free Trade Agreement (FTA) legislation and sent it to the White House for the President's signature.
The House of Representatives voted 323-99 to pass legislation implementing the trade pact with the Senate voting 85-13 to approve it and agreeing to accept the House version of the bill without an additional vote.

For a bill to become law, both chambers must approve identical legislation before it can go to White House for the president's signature or veto.
The new FTA is the first the US has crafted with an African country and its second with an Arab country. Regionally, the US currently has free trade agreements with Israel and Jordan.
The pact will eliminate tariffs on 95% of US-Morocco trade in industrial and consumer goods and will lower barriers for agricultural products and services such as banking and insurance.
Among the groups actively supporting the agreement were the California Council for International Trade (CCIT) and its Washington, DC-based partner, the National Foreign Trade Council (NFTC).
The CCIT and the NFTC - the later taking an active role as a member of the 80-organization US-Morocco FTA Coalition - combined efforts with the Washington, DC-based Business Council for International Understanding (BCIU) to educate members of Congress on the criticality of the FTA and its importance in achieving economic stability in the Middle East.
In a recent letter to Senator Max Baucus (D-Montana), Chairman of the Senate Finance Committee, the Coalition said, "The US-Morocco Free Trade Agreement includes the best market access package of any US FTA with a developing country - granting more than 95% of bilateral trade in consumer and industrial products immediate duty-free access in Morocco."

More importantly, the letter stated, the agreement will "level the playing field and enhance the competitive position of US farmers, manufacturers and service companies vis-à-vis the European Union, which currently has a free trade agreement with Morocco."

California posted some $27 million in export sales to Morocco in 2003 - 13% or about $3 million more than the previous year - with a significant percentage of that total made up of industrial equipment and aerospace products and parts, according to the DOC.
The state ranked 5th in the country in total growth in export sales to the North African nation from 1999 to 2003 - a surge of almost 33%.
Moroccan exports to the US currently amount to $381 million annually, while US-based companies export about $475 million worth of products to Morocco yearly.
Leading exports include aircraft, bulk corn, and industrial machinery.
Recently, exports of fabrics and pharmaceuticals have also increased significantly, according to figures released by the US Department of Commerce (DOC).
A total of 872 US-based companies exported merchandise to Morocco in 2001 - the latest year for which figures are available. Of those, some 67% were classified as small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) with fewer than 500 employees.
SMEs generated more than one-third, or about 36%, of the known value of total US exports to Morocco in 2001. This, the DOC said, was well above the total SME share of US exports to the world, which in 2001 stood at about 29%.
Historically, Morocco was the first country in the world to recognize the newly sovereign United States in 1777 and the Treaty of Peace and Friendship between the two countries, negotiated ten years later, is the longest unbroken treaty relationship in US history.
In addition to the latest FTA with Morocco, Washington has completed free trade agreements with Chile, Jordan, Singapore, Guatemala, El Salvador, Honduras, Nicaragua, Costa Rica, Australia, the Dominican Republic, and Bahrain.
The US is currently negotiating free trade agreements with Panama, Colombia, Ecuador, Peru, Thailand and with the five nations of the Southern African Customs Union (SACU) - Botswana, South Africa, Lesotho, Swaziland, and Namibia.
<http://www.caltradereport.com/eWebPages/front-page-1090870918.html>
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Morocco to build new mosques to fight radicals.
23 Jul 2004 19:09:40 GMT
RABAT, July 23 (Reuters) - Morocco's King Mohammed ordered 20 new mosques built in poor areas of large cities on Friday in a move to counter radical Islamic preaching at illegal mosques.
Twelve Islamic suicide bombers who killed 33 people in Casablanca last year came from shanty towns where, a government investigation found, they had been "brainwashed" by radical clerics in makeshift mosques.
Hundreds of similar mosques have proliferated in several cities across the North African country over the past 20 years.
Friday's announcement was part of an emergency programme to build "proper mosques... to gradually eradicate the phenomenon of sites unfit for worship", the Religious Affairs Ministry said.
The king unveiled a series of reforms to religious affairs in April aimed at restoring Islam's image, which he said had been tarnished by "extremists"
and "blind terrorism".
Construction of the new mosques will begin next year.
Up to two-thirds of Morocco's 32,000 mosques are managed by private donors, though the government officially oversees them.
http://www.alertnet.org/thenews/newsdesk/L23407162.htm
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Congressman Linder supports passage of U.S.-Morocco Free Trade Agreement.

Washington, D.C. (July 23) - Yesterday, Congressman John Linder (R-GA) joined his colleagues in voting to approve H.R. 4842, the "U.S.-Morocco Free Trade Agreement Implementation Act," by a vote of 323-99. The United States and Morocco concluded negotiations on a free trade agreement on March 2, 2004. This agreement will not only strengthen bilateral ties, but also boost trade and investment flows between our two nations. The U.S. currently exports $475 million worth of products and services to Morocco each year.

"I suspect that most people do not know that the Kingdom of Morocco was among the very first countries to recognize the newly sovereign United States in 1777, and that in 1787, the U.S. and Morocco entered into the 'Treaty of Peace and Friendship' - the longest unbroken treaty relationship in U.S. history," Linder said. "Over time, U.S.-Morocco relations have continued to flourish and the Kingdom has supported the U.S. in various wars and peacekeeping efforts. Today, Morocco is a strategic partner in the War on Terrorism and was recently designated a Major Non-NATO Ally by President Bush."

Under the FTA, new economic opportunities for U.S. farmers, consumers, workers, and businesses will be created. Ninety-five percent of bilateral trade in consumer and industrial products will become duty-free immediately following the FTA's implementation, with all remaining tariffs to be eliminated within nine years. U.S. export sectors such as information technology, machinery, construction equipment, and chemicals gain immediate duty-free access to Morocco, and textile and apparel trade will be duty-free if the imports meet certain requirements.

Additionally, the FTA will open up Morocco to most U.S. agricultural products and service industries, both of which will see significant gains.
Morocco has also agreed to improve protections for U.S. investors and intellectual property.

"A free trade agreement with Morocco does not just provide economic benefits," Linder continued. "As U.S. Trade Representative Robert Zoellick has observed, trade agreements such as this one with Morocco provide a vital tool 'for leaders striving to build more open, optimistic, and tolerant Islamic societies.' Trade is a tool that the U.S. can use in its fight against global terror and is a principal component of proliferating the principles of freedom and democracy worldwide. Trade also helps to build strong economies, and assists in fighting poverty and hunger all around the world."
http://www.theweekly.com/news/2004/July/23/John_Linder.html
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NCGA Applauds Passage of U.S. - Morocco Free Trade Agreement.
Friday July 23,
WASHINGTON, July 23 /PRNewswire/ -- The National Corn Growers Association applauds Congress for passing by overwhelming margins the U.S.-Morocco Free Trade Agreement (FTA) this week.
"This forward-looking agreement is balanced and represents a good market opportunity for corn growers and U.S. Agriculture overall," noted National Corn Growers Association President Dee Vaughan. "The vote illustrates Congress' commitment to being a strong force on behalf of trade in the international marketplace."
The legislation passed the Senate July 21 by a vote of 85 to 13; the House followed with its approval July 22 with a vote of 323 to 99. "Chairmen
(Charles) Grassley and (Bill) Thomas should be applauded for their hard work and quick action this week," said Vaughan.
"The National Corn Growers Association would also like to thank President Bush, U.S. Trade Representative Robert Zoellick and Agriculture Ambassador Allen Johnson for a job well done. This agreement would not have been possible if not for their tireless efforts and the hard work of the U.S.
negotiating team. They continue to show their strong support and commitment to U.S. agriculture," said Vaughan.
The Morocco FTA cuts the tariff on U.S. corn initially in half (to 17.5 percent for lower value per ton shipments based on its reference price system), and then proceeds to zero by year six based on linear reductions.
"The Morocco FTA provides U.S. exports a significant advantage in the Moroccan market," said Doug Boisen, chair of NCGA's Joint Trade Policy A-Team. Morocco has a strong demand for U.S. feed grains and driving Morocco's feed grain demand is poultry production, the fastest growing meat production sector in Morocco. The duty-free corn would save the Moroccan poultry and livestock industries approximately $30 million per year based on current imports and applied duties.
Also this week, NCGA, along with 27 other commodity organizations, sent a letter to the Senate and House of Representatives, supporting the Morocco FTA, urging passage of the pact.
The letter stated the agreement could lead to $260 million in increased sales per year by 2015, while Morocco agricultural sales to the U.S. would increase by $25 million. The agreement will also help maintain U.S.
agriculture's competitiveness in the market as well as help to streamline and expedite U.S. sales.
"Corn growers support an aggressive trade agenda and we applaud Congress for the vote this week. Together, we can expand market opportunities that will help the U.S. corn industry remain competitive and profitable in the years to come," concluded Vaughan.
To view the letter in its entirety, please visit the letters section at the NCGA web site, <http://www.ncga.com> .
The National Corn Growers Association mission is to create and increase opportunities for corn growers and to enhance corn's profitability and usage. NCGA represents nearly 33,000 members, 25 affiliated state corn grower organizations and hundreds of thousands of growers who contribute to state checkoff programs.
http://biz.yahoo.com/prnews/040723/cgf040_1.html
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Swarms of locusts devouring N. Africa
Craig S. Smith, New York Times, July 25, 2004 ICH, MOROCCO -- It sounded like a gentle rain falling, but the sun had already launched off the horizon into a cloudless sky. The sound came not from the weather, but from dropping feces and chopped leaves as a swarm of desert locusts steadily denuded a lush fruit grove in the bend of a dry river bed.
The apricot trees were already barren and the bright, immature fruit of the fig trees stood out like ornaments on a Christmas tree. Bunches of grapes dropped periodically from their vines, released by ravenous, nibbling locusts.
"They don't leave anything but the stones," said Guidida Madani, a copper-skinned tribesman who lives several miles away in a sprawling Bedouin tent. He said he has had to buy wheat to make bread because the locusts devoured his small crop. "They even ate holes in my roof," he said.
Schistocerca gregaria, known locally as the pilgrim cricket, is sweeping across North Africa in the worst infestation since the late 1980s. Clouds of the insects, large and dense enough to be seen by satellite, ride 50 miles or more a day in the arid wind. They settle each evening on whatever greenery they can find and eat through the cool night, lifting off again when temperatures rise.
Born in unusually large numbers in the mountains of Morocco and Algeria, the locusts have already spread into neighboring Mauritania, Mali and Senegal, and experts worry that a sluggish international response will magnify the problem.
Female locusts typically lay three sets of up to 100 eggs in their lifetimes, and if the locusts are allowed to reproduce on the southern fringe of the Sahara, they will return in greater numbers with the north wind later this year.
"If they come back with more force we'll be overwhelmed," said Brahim Boudarine, the provincial agricultural director here.
Forced diplomacy
Part of the problem is a strip of no man's land, 20 to 30 miles wide, along Morocco's long, contested border with Algeria. Because neither side dares fly planes near the zone, it has become an unintended breeding refuge for desert locusts.
The infestation is forcing diplomacy between the often hostile neighbors: At the end of June locust experts from both countries met in Algiers to coordinate their efforts.
"If we can control this zone, we can break the cycle," said Boudarine, who added that the two sides had vowed to treat swarms close to the border, like the one that was devouring the fruit trees near Ich (pronounced ish).
The current infestation began in 2003 when an unusually wet summer south of the Sahara promoted breeding. When the locusts reach a critical mass, they swarm and move with the wind in search of food. The prevailing winds carry them south in the summer and back north in the winter and spring. They began reaching North Africa earlier this year for the spring breeding season. Now they are on their way back south.
Some people around the Sahara eat them, grilled or lightly pickled in brine.
But there are far too many for the insects' natural predators to consume.
In the district agricultural office 50 miles west of Ich, Boudarine sketched the progression of the short-horned grasshopper plague. The swarms that arrived in northeastern Morocco this year, he said, laid more than 1,000 egg pods per square yard in some places, producing as many as 9,000 locust larvae per square foot.
Once hatched, the tiny black insects start eating and growing, turning bright yellow and black by their second or third week. When food runs short they move en masse, hopping and crawling hundreds of feet a day and eating any vegetation in their path.
Moving carpets of insects cause periodic traffic accidents when they cross roads. In southeastern Algeria last month, 24 people were injured when cars and trucks skidded on the slick remains of thousands of squashed bugs.
Locust prospectors
Alert governments try to kill the larvae with insecticides before they take wing. Boudarine said his extermination teams had treated one larvae field 38 miles long and 6 miles wide. But the land is too rugged and vast to enable them to find all of the breeding grounds. Morocco has focused instead on protecting the desert's string of oases, on which the fragile Saharan economy depends.
Within a few weeks the insects shed their bright skins to reveal pinkish white bodies with long tapered wings speckled like quail's eggs. They eat until they are strong enough to fly long distances, and then they swarm.
Because of the abundant rains this year, the fringes of the Sahara are greener than they have been in 60 years, which is in part why the damage to agriculture has so far been slight. In drier years infestations focus on crops, but right now there is plenty of other vegetation.
An adult desert locust can consume its weight in food a day, and the insects choose the choicest chow, devouring one kind of plant before moving on to others. One man said he had found tomatoes gnawed to the ground while the onions beside them were untouched.
To combat the plague, Morocco uses locust prospectors who hunt for swarms and then track them until they land for the night, radioing back the bugs'
coordinates to extermination teams.
Camped in a bright yellow tent beneath a stand of pine trees, the radio operator for one prospecting team said two days earlier he watched with binoculars for half an hour as a swarm passed high overhead, flying south.
Once a swarm is located, exterminators arrive early in the morning to spray the insects before they lift off for the day. Men carrying backpack sprayers kill smaller swarms. Crop dusters are called in for larger ones.
Near Ich, prospectors laid out four large orange vinyl mats, each marked with a giant black arrow at the corners of the area to be treated, less than a mile from the unmarked Algerian border.
Before long a bright yellow crop duster began sweeping low back and forth across the defined area. Locusts, covering the fruit trees like scales, began dropping to the ground.
http://www.startribune.com/stories/484/4891873.html
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Morocco gets US free trade deal. Friday, 23 July, 2004
A free trade agreement between Morocco and the United States has come into immediate effect.
The US House of Representatives gave its final approval on Thursday. It is the first trade agreement the US has signed with an African country.
Last month Morocco was designated a major non-Nato US ally by President Bush, in recognition of the country's support in the US-led war on terror.
US farmers are expected to be one of the biggest beneficiaries of the deal.
"This free trade agreement... signals our commitment to deepening America's relationship with the Middle East and North Africa," US Trade Representative Robert Zoellick said in a statement.
The deal eliminates more than 95% of tariffs on consumer products and industrial goods, other tariffs will end in nine years.
Last week Morocco hosted a major Nato military exercise involving naval and air forces from 10 countries; Morocco was the only non-Nato member taking part.
Co-operation
Morocco has increased its co-operation in fighting terrorism with Spain following the Madrid bomb attacks that killed 191 people.
Fourteen of the 18 people provisionally charged in connection with attacks on trains were Moroccans.
The Moroccan authorities have arrested about 2,000 people in cases linked to terrorism since it was hit by a suicide attack in Casablanca last May.
About 45 people, 12 of them bombers, were killed.
However, human rights groups have said that the anti-terror measures have eroded human rights and that suspected Islamists have been tortured by security agents.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/africa/3920489.stm
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Ministry denies existence of intoxication cases due to anti-locusts pesticides RABAT, July 24 - No cases of intoxication have been registered in relation to pesticides used in the fight of locusts, assured, on Friday, a release of the Health Ministry.

The release was issued following the publication of press articles that noted the existence of cases of intoxication in regions where pesticides were used to fight locust swarms, notably in the eastern region.

The pesticides used by Morocco to fight crickets meet international norms and are recommended by the World Health Organization (WHO) and the Food and Alimentation Organization (FAO), insisted the ministry.

According to the release, all workers who are part of anti-locusts operations benefit of a regular medical follow-up.

The ministry added that with respect to the recommended quantities and with the use of adequate protection, the pesticides do not represent a danger on health.

Since the beginning of the national campaign against locusts, over 2.644.000 hectares have been treated in the country.

The United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) granted Morocco last month an emergency assistance of US $396,000 to help the north African country in the fight against locust swarms.
http://www.map.co.ma/mapeng/news/general/wcupzi.htm

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------------------------------------------------------------------HM the King rewards Coranic schools best management SALE (Rabat twin city), July 23 - HM King Mohammed VI of Morocco on Friday handed the award bearing his name to Coranic schools with best management and education methodology, according to a release of the Ministry of Habous
(endowments) and Islamic affairs.

The monarch, who bears the title of Amir Al Mouminine (commander of the faithful), also handed to graduates certificates and pecuniary prizes following the prayer performed in Al Aadham mosque in Sale.
Awards were also handed to the top five of the literacy program 2003-2004 that is organized in some mosques located in the urban areas.
This literacy program benefited 17,347 people, including 13,509 men and
3,838 women.
http://www.map.co.ma/mapeng/home_dep/h_dep21604.htm
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------------------------------------------------------------------Morocco
may be "powerful symbol of development," Heritage Foundation WASHINGTON, July 23 - Morocco, an "ideal ally" for the United States, may be a "powerful symbol of development" through the openness of its economy, underlined two members of Heritage Foundation, a Washington-based institute for political research.

"Morocco - as a Muslim country, a Middle Eastern country and an African country - can serve as a powerful symbol of development through economic openness, civil society and good governance," wrote Anthony B. Kim and Brett D. Schaefer in a commentary published in the Washington Times, the same day the senate approved Morocco-US free trade pact.

The Free Trade pact was approved Thursday by the House of Representatives that voted the agreement by 323-99.

The authors of the commentary said thanks to the FTA the two countries could see significant gains in trade, adding that "gaining tariff-free access to the U.S. market would be a significant coup for Moroccan exporters."

"With its demonstrated commitment toward political and economic reform, Morocco is an ideal ally in the region," Heritage Foundation members noted.

They recalled in this context that Morocco was recently awarded status as a major non-NATO ally, a privilege that grants the country special privileges.

On the other hand, the authors of the article deemed that a key part of counter-terrorism is "combating poverty which can fuel the resentment, desperation and hopelessness that terrorist organizations utilize to recruit new members and muster support for their activities."

Kim and Schaefer believe that the solution to poverty is to deliver greater economic freedom, "a key component of any long-term solution to terrorism."

The researchers also recalled that the United States has signed an agreement with Jordan and that another one with Bahrain is in the works. "Without these initial agreements, there would be virtually no chance of realizing the Bush administration's goal of negotiating a U.S.-Middle East Free Trade Area by 2013," they underlined.
http://www.map.co.ma/mapeng/home_dep/h_depfoundation.htm
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Government earmarks $550-million to eradicate shanty towns RABAT, July 22 - A national program to eradicate shanty towns in Rabat and nearby cities of Sale and Temara, to cost 5 billion Dirhams (around USD 555 million), was presented at a ceremony chaired, here Thursday, by HM King Mohammed VI of Morocco, who was accompanied by his brother, Prince Moulay Rachid.

The first part of the program will benefit 550,000 citizens in 106.500 shanty towns, with, as special objectives, stopping proliferation of unhealthy housing and anarchy in urban areas, developing attractive alternative to illegal housing by increasing supply and resettling 860,000 households living in improper housing.

The program will be carried out in 5 years, between 2004 and 2008.

The sovereign was also briefed on the "Nour Zaer" project which will resettle inhabitants of Douar El Koura shanty town in Rabat in 2,200 new houses. HM King Mohammed VI had launched construction works of the project in November 2002.
http://www.map.co.ma/mapeng/home_dep/h_dep31604.htm
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rate estimated at 13.7 pc in 2003, Minister RABAT, July 22 - Minister for Social Development, Family and Solidarity, Abderrahim Harouchi, revealed, here Tuesday, that poverty rate in Morocco was estimated at 13.7 percent in 2003.

Harouchi told the press that economic vulnerability was estimated at 25 percent in the same year and the illiteracy rate at 48 percent, notably in rural areas.

According to the human development index, said the minister, these data place Morocco at 125th rank at the world level, which is far behind that of neighboring countries.

Harouchi said his ministry has taken into account different indicators to elaborate an action plan and define its main objectives to establish a comprehensive and integrated policy for social development and fight of poverty.

He added that his ministry is focusing on fighting poverty and exclusion, meeting the needs of impoverished people, and promoting solidarity, participation and partnership.
http://www.map.co.ma/mapeng/news/general/gen-poverty.htm

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destroy over 1.000 ha up to July
RABAT, July 22 - Some 166 fires that ravaged Moroccan forests from January to July 2004 have destroyed an area of 1.056 hectares, said on Tuesday the Highest Commission for Forest and Anti-desetification.

The Commission noted that 462 hectares were destroyed in July alone with 55 fires, underlining that it has taken some practical measures to tackle this problem.

These measures, it pointed out, mainly aim at reinforcing control and raising awareness.

Forests occupy an area of nearly 9 million hectares in Morocco, that is 12 percent of the national territory.

Human activity is the main cause of fires, notably during summer.
http://www.map.co.ma/mapeng/news/general/gen-fires.htm
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orn Belgian appointed Minister in Belgium BRUSSELS, July 19 - Fadila Laanan, a Moroccan-born Belgian was appointed Sunday Culture, Audiovisual and Youth Minister in the regional government of the French community in Belgium.

Laanan, 37, was part of 13 Moroccan-born candidates who were elected in different regional legislative institutions in Belgium.

The appointment of the Moroccan is deemed a strong signal in favor of the immigrant population.

Young descendants of the Moroccan immigrant population account for over 300,000 in Belgium. Most of them were born in the European country or went there an early age,nd they are widely facing unemployment which they attribute to discriminatory practices.
http://www.map.co.ma/mapeng/eng.htm
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------------------------------------------------------------------USD 588 million Mazagan seaside resort project finalized RABAT, July 22 - The Moroccan government and a group of investors signed here Thursday a convention on the construction of the 5.3 billion Dirham
($588 million) Mazagan seaside resort in El Jadida province.

This tourist station, one of six other stations forming the AZUR plan that aims at drawing 10 million tourists by 2010, will be built over 500 ha and provide 2,000 direct and 10,000 indirect jobs. The Mazagen seaside resort will be built up in three phases, the first of which will require 2.4 billion DH.

The deal was signed by Moroccan premier, Driss Jettou, and the Kerzner Group, one of the most famous developers of tourist stations (Sensiti in South Africa, Atlantis in the Bahamas, Palm Dubaï project), along with other partners of the private sector.

Jettou said the Mazagan project, "one of AZUR's major ones, will have positive effects on the economic development of the region," reiterating the government's support to this plan until it is achieved within the fixed deadline.

This new investment will not only give new impetus to the economic and social development of the region, which will, from now on, be one of the most popular tourist destinations, but will also make of Morocco a destination of choice for international entrepreneurs, said Adil Douiri, the Minister of Tourism, Handicraft and Social Economy.

Other major resorts are Saidia (northeast), Mogador (Essaouira, Southwest), Lixus (Larache, North), Taghazout (near Agadir) and Plage Blanche (near Tangiers, North). They will cost 45 billion Dirhams ($5 billion) and increase Morocco's hosting capacity by 120,000 beds.
http://www.map.co.ma/mapeng/home_dep/h_depmmay15.htm
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------------------------------------------------------------------FTA will not affect Morocco's ability to preserve public health, Zoellick RABAT, July 23 - US Trade Representative Robert Zoellick has underlined that the "Morocco FTA will not affect that country's ability to take measures necessary to protect public health or to use the WTO solution to import drugs."

The two countries "confirmed their understanding" that the chapter concerning intellectual property does not "affect the ability of either Party to take necessary measures to protect public health by promoting access to medicines for all, in particular concerning cases such as HIV/AIDS, tuberculosis, malaria, and other epidemics as well as circumstances of extreme urgency or national emergency," noted a statement issued Thursday by the US trade representative department.

According to the same source, the accord approved by the American congress, will "not prevent effective utilization of last year's WTO consensus allowing developing countries that lack pharmaceutical manufacturing capacity to import drugs under compulsory licenses."

The FTA with Morocco, signed last June 15, will eliminate tariffs on 95% of bilateral trade in consumer and industrial products, with all remaining tariffs to be eliminated within nine years.

The deal is expected to give a fresh impetus to two-way trade between Morocco and the United States.
http://www.map.co.ma/mapeng/news/economy/eco_003.htm
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Calls to speed up Morocco-U.S. FTA implementation Morocco-USA, Politics, 7/29/2004 Chairman of the American-Arab Chamber of Trade, David Hammoud, on Monday urged for speeding up the implementation of the Free Trade Agreement singed June 15th between Morocco and the United States.

The FTA, approved last week by the American congress, would eliminate tariffs on 95% of bilateral trade in consumer and industrial products, with all remaining tariffs to be eliminated within nine years.

"The visit of King Mohammed VI (to the United States) sent a strong signal to the U.S." and represented a "fresh opportunity to strengthen economic relations between the two countries," Hammoud told the national TV "TVM,"
referring to the visit the Moroccan monarch paid to the United States early this month.

He underlined that American companies advocate strongly the FTA with Morocco while Democrats and Republicans in the Congress are particularly interested in the pact because it is the first of its kind to be concluded with an African country and the second with an Arab nation after Jordan.

This agreement will help resolve the problem of unemployment in Morocco and will open new perspectives for American companies to explore fresh markets in Africa and the Arab world, he said, recalling the efforts made by the American-Arab trade chamber for the conclusion of the FTA.

On the other hand, Hammoud said Moroccan and U.S. leaders "share the same objectives and visions with regard to cooperation, economic development, fight against terrorism, restoration of peace and security and enhancement of freedom throughout the world."
http://www.arabicnews.com/ansub/Daily/Day/040729/2004072923.html
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Unemployment rate climbs up in Morocco
(Agencies)

29 July 2004
RABAT - A report from the Bank of Morocco has said that the rate of unemployment among holders of higher education certificates has risen from the 25.6 per cent to 26.5 per cent while the number of unemployed women has jumped from 24.2 per cent last year to 25. 8 per cent.
Observers of the Bank of Morocco report, presented to King Mohammed VI of Morocco, by the bank's director, described the report as "very frank"
compared to the "optimistic" one presented by the country's Finance Minister, Fathallah Walalu.
According to the report, the number of employed adults - 51 years and above - stood at 10.9 million, an increase of five per cent as the rate of the employment rose to 51.9 per cent against 46 per cent in 2002. The number of the unemployed people in 2003 stood at 1.3 million at the rate of
11.9 per cent. This represents a rise of 0.3 per cent compared to the rate in 2002. The number of gainfully employed in the rural areas stood at 4.9 million, representing a decline of unemployment in the rural areas by 0.5 per cent.
The report said that inflation rate continues to be moderate at 1.2 per cent. It also said the budget deficit also declined. It attributed this development to privatising of dividends.
Meanwhile, King Mohammed has made changes to the military hierarchy, on the occasion of the fifth anniversary of his ascension to the throne.
According to the Moroccan News agency, the King, in his capacity as Supreme Commander of the Armed Forces and Chief of Staff of the Royal Armed Forces, appointed General Dokor Darmi Abdel Aziz Banani as General Inspector of the Armed Forces.
Banani will succeed General Abdel Haq Al Qadri, the news agency report said.
http://www.khaleejtimes.com/DisplayArticle.asp?xfile=data/middleeast/2004/Ju
ly/middleeast_July745.xml&section=middleeast&col=
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Rights body proposes strengthening Morocco's penal code Morocco, Politics, 7/30/2004 The Moroccan advisory Council on Human Rights "Conseil Consultatif des Droits de l'Homme" (CCDH) has proposed the "strengthening and upgrading" of Morocco's penal code as well as the stepping up of efforts in communication and education to "provide against racism, discrimination, hatred and violence."

In an advisory opinion, at the request of King Mohammed VI, the Council said beyond its juridical aspect, the royal initiative bears a high political and civilizational meaning as it evidences a strong will to make of Morocco a "land of fraternity, conviviality, tolerance, respect of others and of an ethnical, cultural and spiritual symbiosis."

The Council deemed that "the legal, equitable and efficient repression of all forms of racism, discrimination and hatred, constitute one of the fundamentals of the rule of Law and democracy. It constitutes a guarantee of the essential human right of everybody to live in security and to enjoy freedom (É)"

CCDH chairman Omar Azziman was recently received by the monarch to whom he submitted the 2003 report on the situation of human rights in Morocco.

The report, the first of its kind since the Council's mandate was expanded pursuant to its amended statutes, was unanimously adopted by the Council at its 21st session last April 23.

Issued by an independent institution placed under the King's authority, the report highlighted in an objective and impartial manner the accomplishments and advances made with respect to the protection and promotion of human rights, as well as shortcomings, abuses and excesses which have been pointed out in this connection.

The CCDH chairman also submitted to the sovereign another report in connection with the situation in penitentiaries.

Prepared in light of the advanced legislation adopted in 1999 on the subject, the report emphasized the major progress that has been achieved as well as the areas of inefficiency.
http://www.arabicnews.com/ansub/Daily/Day/040730/2004073015.html

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140,000 children back to school thanks to informal education program Morocco, Education, 7/30/2004 More than 140,000 children have returned to school thanks to the informal education program set up jointly with the civil society, said Wednesday, Moroccan State Secretary for Literacy and Informal Education, Anis Birou.

At a meeting with representatives of associations active in the realm of informal education, Birou, said however, the goals achieved by the program so far are not enough if we take into account the annual growing number of non-schooled children.

He added that his department aspires to raise the number of people adhering to the informal education program, stressing that this requires a help from associations.
http://www.arabicnews.com/ansub/Daily/Day/040730/2004073017.html
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King resolved to achieve 'optimal reform' in the religious domain Morocco, Politics, 7/31/2004 King Mohammed VI of Morocco on Friday voiced resolve to achieve "optimal reform" in the religious field and insisted on the need to keep religion apart from politics, in a State of the Nation address, on the occasion of the Throne Day, marking the fifth anniversary of his accession to the throne.

"I am just as determined to achieve optimal reform in the religious domain so as to uphold the values and tenets of the generous, tolerant Islamic faith and preserve the unity of the Maliki rite, by adopting an open-minded form of Ijtihad, which is consistent with modern times, in order to protect our youth against foreign, destructive trends," the monarch emphasized.

The aim, he said, is not merely to ensure that reform in this domain is complementary to the action undertaken in the educational and cultural fields, for the reform policy should also include the political sector, where differences of opinion are expressed freely.

"This is why religion and politics should be kept apart, since religion concerns sacred tenets which must be shielded from any dissension or disagreement."

The monarch issued, last Friday, instructions to build several mosques every year in poor neighborhoods located in large agglomerations.

This move, part of an emergency program starting in 2005, aims at ending definitively and progressively the proliferation of unfit places of worship, the Ministry of Habous (endowments) and Islamic Affairs said in a release.

The king also gave instructions for restructuring the religious realm through the reorganization of the Superior Council of Ulemas (religious scholars), the broadening of Ulemas Councils' networks and the extension of their prerogatives.

In his speech, King Mohammed VI insisted on the need "to guard against any use of religion for political purposes," recalling in this regard that under the Kingdom's constitutional monarchy, religion and politics come together only in the person of the King, Commander of the Faithful.

"In fulfilling the sacred mission with which I am entrusted, I am determined to ensure politics is practiced by the relevant institutions and within the bounds set for it.

Similarly, I shall see to it that religious matters are dealt with by the relevant councils and institutions, and that religion is practiced in mosques and other appropriate places of worship, in strict compliance with freedom of worship, of which I am the guarantor," the monarch concluded.
http://www.arabicnews.com/ansub/Daily/Day/040731/2004073118.html
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Economic takeoff impossible without healthy social climate, King Morocco, Politics, 7/31/2004 Morocco's King Mohammed VI on Friday called for what he termed a "new social contract" between the Government and the Trade Unions to pave the way for the country's economic takeoff.

In a State of the Nation address, Friday, on the occasion of the Throne Day, the monarch said "economic takeoff cannot be achieved without a healthy social climate, which encourages investment and creates jobs. I am therefore calling for a new social contract to be agreed upon by government authorities together with the social partners concerned."

The monarch, who is celebrating today the fifth anniversary of his enthronement, made it clear that this contract "should be in the form of a charter, and should be based on several interdependent measures, including a commitment to social stability, broader reform of labor regulations, particularly with regard to the right to strike, so as to guard against any abuse thereof and to protect the economy from wildcat strikes and their negative impact on investment."

Efforts, he emphasized, must also be made to "improve and expand social security and medical cover insurance, to fight poverty and all forms of social exclusion, to kindle the spirit of solidarity and to see prompt action is taken to save retirement schemes before it is too late."

In his speech, which the monarch said he had decided should not consist of a mere listing of achievements, but rather an "opportunity to share with you a vision for the future," he insisted that "appropriate measures must be taken to ensure a life of dignity, by seeing that citizens are provided with decent housing and that shanty-towns and substandard dwellings are eradicated, in accordance with the instructions I have issued in this regard."

Last week, a national program to eradicate shanty towns in Rabat and nearby cities of Sale and Temara, to cost 5 billion Dirhams (around US$ 555 million), was presented at a ceremony chaired by King Mohammed VI.

The first part of the program will benefit 550,000 citizens in 106,500 shanty towns, with, as special objectives, stopping proliferation of unhealthy housing and anarchy in urban areas, developing attractive alternative to illegal housing by increasing supply and resettling 860,000 households living in improper housing.

The program will be carried out in 5 years, between 2004 and 2008.

In his speech, the monarch also touched on the rural world which, he acknowledged, "suffer the most from shortcomings in social services."
Consequently, he explained, our economy cannot be upgraded without an effective strategy for the development of rural areas, which is capable of transforming traditional farming into a modern, productive agricultural system.

To attain this objective, he added, we need a new agricultural policy which makes the most of our assets and existing infrastructure, while ensuring that the soil in each region is used to its best advantage.

"The aim is to increase agricultural production and develop the type of agribusiness which is best-suited to the region's natural resources, taking into account environmental constraints, including scarce water resources and desertification."

As far as the reform of the public sector is concerned, the monarch said it will continue to be a top priority. "Despite the progress made, this sector still does not come up to citizens' expectations, and our tremendous resources are still not being used in an optimal way. We must, therefore, reform the management of public affairs, and modernize and decentralize government institutions, through an ambitious plan designed to upgrade the public sector."
http://www.arabicnews.com/ansub/Daily/Day/040731/2004073120.html

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