Business Development Conference to Showcase Morocco as Gateway to Africa, Europe for US Companies

WASHINGTON, March 6, 2014 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ (MATIC) — US and Moroccan business and government leaders will convene at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Cooperation in Rabat, Morocco on March 10 and 11 for the 2nd Annual Morocco-US Business Development Conference. The two-day event will offer American companies an in-depth look at trade and investment opportunities in Morocco.

"As a gateway to African, European and Middle Eastern markets, and the only North African country that has a Free Trade Agreement with the US, Morocco offers US investors a wealth of opportunities in a stable and vital business environment," said Jean AbiNader, Executive Director of the Moroccan American Trade and Investment Center in Washington, DC.

The conference will bring together some of the top private and public-sector leaders from both countries in automotive and aeronautics manufacturing, renewable energy technologies, and other key industries. US speakers include representatives from the State and Commerce Departments and the US Chamber of Commerce. Companies represented include Jacobs Engineering, Boeing, Delphi, and Dow Chemical, among others. Key Moroccan speakers include Moulay Hafid El Alamy, Minister of Trade, Industry, New Technologies, and Investments; Mostafa Terrab, President and CEO of the OCP Group; Miriem Bensalah Chaqroun, Chairman of the General Confederation of Moroccan Enterprises (CGEM); and Younes Zrikem, who chairs the Free Trade Agreement (FTA) Committee at CGEM.

The conference will feature a number of forums that address the full implementation of the FTA, sector-specific issues, and reaching African markets from Morocco. The second day of the conference will offer site visits to Tangier and the TangerMed Port facility and Casablanca—the business center of the country and home of Casablanca Financial City (CFC), a business park established to service African markets. Mrs. Chaqroun, from Morocco's CGEM, and US Chamber Vice President Scott Eisner, who oversees Africa for the Chamber, will also sign a Memorandum of Understanding consolidating areas of cooperation between the Chamber and CGEM.

The Business Development Conference was launched as part of the US-Morocco Strategic Dialogue process established between these two historic allies in 2012. This year also marks the final year for full implementation of the Morocco-US FTA.

"The US signed a treaty of commerce and friendship with Morocco in 1786, and that relationship continues to this day, bolstered by our Free Trade Agreement, and most recently by the 2012 Strategic Dialogue," said AbiNader. "The Business Development Conference provides an opportunity for economic and industry leaders from both countries to explore areas for enhancing trade and investment for the future."

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The Moroccan American Trade and Investment Center (MATIC) was established under the Royal Patronage of His Majesty King Mohammed VI as a vehicle to promote the Moroccan-US FTA. MATIC is an American based non-profit trade association that assists the country of Morocco in its quest to encourage economic growth and stability through the promotion of its private sector. For more information, please visit www.moroccanamericantrade.com.

SOURCE Moroccan American Trade and Investment Center