The speech of Hon. Enaam MAYARA, President of the House of Councillors at The Second Pan-African Parliament (PAP) ordinary session of its sixth Parliament
His Excellency Mr. Azali Assoumani, President of the United Republic of the Comoros, Chaiperson of the African Union,
Hon. (Honorable) Mr. Chief Fortune Charumbira, President of the Pan-African Parliament,
Hon. Speakers of the National Assembly and the regional pariliamants,
Ladies and Gentlemen,
At the outset, on behalf of the Parliament of the Kingdom of Morocco, I would like to extend my deep appreciation for participating in the opening session of the African Parliament, alongside all the components of our continental institutional family, and I would like to express my gratitude to the President of the African Parliament, my friend Chief Fortune Charumbira, for his honorable invitation.
This session, is taking place in a special global context, mainly characterized by the continuing negative consequences of international geopolitical crises, and the accelerating regional developments and events that increase the magnitude of common continental challenges, especially in terms of peace, security and development. We are all called upon, based on our main role as representatives of the people in our countries, to build a continental parliamentary agenda capable of facing all challenges and accelerating the emergence of a continental model to ensure common development and achieve the aspirations of our nations for well-being, progress and prosperity.
I also commended the organization of the current parliament session by the African Parliament under the title of "Accelerating the Implementation of the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA)", which comes in perfect harmony with the theme of the African Union for the year 2023, and this will make our current session a “working session” and a main station for contributing to the success of the great continental economic process that aims to establish the largest free trade area in the world, with a market made up of about 1.3 billion people and a combined domestic product of about 3.4 trillion dollars.
This will enable the acceleration of the dynamics of common development; allow the creation of continental added value, and build a strong and competitive African economic system which is the main entrance towards new horizons, practices and mechanisms in the field of solidarity. And I would like to recall what His Majesty King Mohammed VI, may Almighty God assist him, said during the exceptional summit of the African Union in Kigali on the continental free trade area : “The establishment of a free trade zone at the continental level would contribute to mobilizing energies, developing expertise and stimulating creative thinking, and responding in particular to the real ambition of our youth to build a strong and integrated African continent.” End of the high royal speech.
Mr. the President,
Ladies and Gentlemen,
The processes of the implementation of the "African Continental Free Trade Area" are at the heart of the Kingdom of Morocco's interests, given their importance in changing the continental development model, to become more productive and create opportunities for all. This important continental project will also enable the creation of a large number of job opportunities for the benefit of young people and save 30 million Africans out of extreme poverty and improve the income of 68 million people, while increasing continental wealth by 450 billion dollars.
Therefore, and according to an ambitious methodology, my country has worked to contribute to build a continental model of "common development" through a set of integrating projects and programs in a large number of countries of the continent, concerned with the development of infrastructure, university education and vocational training, enhancing food and energy sovereignty, health security, valorizing internal resources, and strengthening industrial systems.
The Kingdom of Morocco is also working to exchange experiences and best practices related to economic and development programs, alongside the strengthening of the financial and banking systems of a large number of the continent countries. This enabled the increase in the total value of Morocco's bilateral trade with African countries by 9.5 percent as an annual average, in parallel with the strengthening of Moroccan investments in Africa, which consist mainly of direct investments in sub-Saharan Africa, which made the kingdom of Morocco the first African investor in the African continent.
In line with the spirit of cooperation, solidarity and synergy that is at the heart of the doctrine of cooperation between the Kingdom of Morocco and its African brothers, my country is working on investing in order to enhance continental food security by accompanying a group of African countries in building advanced agricultural strategies to strengthen food sovereignty, enhance the ability to compete in international agriculture and get the access to new markets. My country is also working, through the Chérifien Office of Phosphates, to develop an advanced continental value chain that will enable Africa, within years, to have fair and equitable access to sufficient quantities of fertilizers. My country adopts, a clear vision to implement projects that will change the agricultural appearance of the continent and enhance its food security, the most prominent of which is the work to establish an industrial platform for the production of fertilizers in Ethiopia at a cost of 3.7 billion dollars and with a production capacity of about 2.5 million tons annually of fertilizers destined for the local and export markets in addition to opening a factory in Ghana, which will be dedicated to the manufacture of fertilizers, and a second factory in Nigeria, which will be dedicated to the manufacture of ammonia used in agricultural fertilization.
On the energy level, my country and the Federal Republic of Nigeria are working on the completion of a gas pipeline between the two countries that passes through a group of countries in the west of the continent. It is an ambitious initiative to value the capabilities of African resources, reshape the regional energy map, enhance the logistical and competitive capabilities of African gas, and strengthen its position in the European market. The investments of this project will amount to about 25 billion dollars, and after its implementation, it will become the longest gas pipeline in the world and the focus of the international energy map.
All these initiatives are an expression of the faith of the Moroccans and their king in the principles of South-South cooperation, solidarity and synergy between the countries of the African continent. It is not a new, temporary option or is linked to a specific file, rather, it is a reference doctrine in Moroccan diplomacy since independence. It was manifested in hosting Morocco, supporting and training the liberation armies of many African countries, including Algeria, Angola, Mozambique and Cape Verde, to combat colonialism, as well as supporting African liberation movements, foremost of which is the endeavor of the great African leader Nelson Mandela to liberate his country from the apartheid system after his military training in Morocco in 1962.
Mr. the President,
Ladies and Gentlemen,
The first words of His Majesty King Mohammed VI upon the return of my country to its continental institutional family were a title reflecting Africa's status for all Moroccans, as His Majesty, may Almighty God protect him, said: “How beautiful is this day, when I return home, after a long absence ! How beautiful is this day, when I bring my heart and feelings to the place I love ! Africa is my continent, and it is also my home.” End of the high royal speech.
These words were a major directive to all Moroccan institutions to place African action at the forefront of their priorities and interests. It is the approach adopted by the Parliament of the Kingdom of Morocco in order to develop coordination with national parliaments, the African Parliament and regional parliaments. Actually, we extend our hands to everyone in order to exchange experiences and best practices, and work to confront the challenges facing our countries. We also express from this platform our support for all serious parliamentary initiatives, which aims to strengthen institutional cooperation and joint thinking on ways to emerge from continental parliamentary cooperation models that keep pace with the bilateral and multilateral dynamics, especially in order to face the challenges related to food security, water scarcity, the growing dangers of terrorist groups, armed movements and militias, combating the exploitation of children in armed conflicts, clandestine migration and human trafficking, in addition to the challenges of digitization, the fourth industrial revolution, confronting climate change and other issues of common interest at the continental and regional level.
My country's determination to develop cooperation and solidarity with all African brothers is matched only by its similarity to the success of all the institutional projects that the African Union is working to implement, foremost of which is strengthening the role of the Pan-African Parliament as an actual expression of the continent's slogan "One Voice, One Continent ».
This institutional development carried out by the African Union will not succeed without concerted joint efforts and strengthening unity and stability in all countries of the continent, according to a methodology that enables us to pass to the maximum development speed in a fair and equitable manner among all the components of our continental institutional family.
Mr. the President,
My parliamentarian colleagues,
Ladies and Gentlemen,
We are absolutely certain that the stage launched by the African Parliament by electing its current Bureau will be full of continental parliamentary achievements, institutional development of our African Parliament, and strengthening its performance and governance system. And you will always find the Kingdom of Morocco at the forefront of your supporters and supports your great work in order to activate a new model for joint African parliamentary action.
In conclusion, as I renew to the Bureau of the African Parliament and its dear President my friend Chief Fortune CHARUMBIRA, my deep appreciation for his honorable invitation to attend the opening ceremony of the current parliamentary session, we are certain of the success of your work and look forward to the recommendations that will result from it, we hope that the African citizen would be at the heart of its directions, and the stability, peace and security of our continent would be its most important concerns.
May Almighty God protect Africa and its people
Peace and blessings upon you.
