Address of the Speaker of the House of Representatives, Hon. Rachid Talbi El Alami at Opening of African Parliamentary Conference on “Parliamentary Cooperation in Light of the Present Challenges”

Honorable fellow parliamentarians,

Your Excellencies the Ambassadors,

Ladies and gentlemen,

We are pleased to welcome you again, dear brothers with whom we share belonging to the ample fertile land of Africa, to the common history of struggle, and to the abundant African culture that is rich with its extension over time and its unique diversity that stretches over a wide continental area, and honorable colleagues with whom we share projects of democratic and institutional edifice and an aspired African ascent.

Honorable colleagues, when we first thought of hosting this Conference, we were driven by several concerns, the first of which is the magnitude of the challenges our continent faces and their aggravation amidst a context of increase and reproduction of successive international crises. The second concern is the imperative of finding parliamentary spaces for a debate not restrained by the regulations of the thematic institutional conferences we hold within the scope of multilateral parliamentary organizations. The third concern is the desire to contribute collectively to supporting the role assumed by these African regional and continental organizations and our national Parliaments in defending the interests of our continent.

This Conference falls within the scope of the African thematic parliamentary gatherings organized in several African capitals, including the ones hosted by the House of Representatives of the Kingdom of Morocco, which has always hosted many conferences and seminars on several prominent African questions, such as “Africa in the face of climate imbalances,” “the challenges of African integration,” “the movement of individuals and goods across African countries," and other themes.

Honorable colleagues,

Ladies and gentlemen,

The challenges our continent faces today do not require an enormous effort to be identified. They rather necessitate our collective responses, our collective intelligence, and a higher level of preparedness and mobilization to defend the interests of our continent, at a time when continental and national egoisms are increasing in other continents, as concretely evidenced amidst the Covid-19 pandemic when our countries, Governments, Parliaments, civil and political powers, and social and medical services, handled the pandemic and its repercussions with limited resources, but with a strong will and social solidarity that forms the core of the African culture.

Citing this reminder, I would not like to reopen a wound from which our continent suffered in the context of unjust international relations. On the contrary, my goal is to note that relying on oneself and the joint African will, and unifying efforts is the key to standing up to the challenges that hinder several development dynamics in the continent.

At the lead of the challenges that face our African continent figures the resurgence of internal conflicts in several countries where internal security is undermined, at a time that witnesses the success of Africa in shaking off transnational and internal conflicts, in parallel with constructing national democratic institutions, and when regular elections have become a political tradition that the vast majority of African countries respect, and when a new generation of political elites has emerged to lead Africa at all levels.

A quick scan of the map of conflicts worldwide would show us that Africa remains the continent that witnesses the largest number of disputes, and the most complex ones.

These conflicts contribute to deepening vulnerability and feed on it, particularly in geopolitical contexts where terrorist groups and separatist trends have established themselves in some regions of the continent, hence obstructing development, democratic and institutional construction, stability, and peace.

If the terrorist challenge in its contemporary format is extraneous and imported to our continent, and, furthermore, has no link to the moderate pacifist African nature, its global outgrowths and roots make it, nevertheless, more detrimental in African contexts.

Terrorism in Africa does not only compromise stability, but also pushes towards the reign of chaos and a non-state situation. Besides, it lays its hand on several strategic resources in several African countries to guarantee the financing of its crimes, expand its area, and increase the degree of terror amongst populations. Therefore, terrorism is complementary to the other forms of organized crimes and separatist movements with which its shares the same interests, strategies, and stakes.

Suppose the international community, and particularly the influential powers in global decisions and rich countries, are put to the test in terms of providing serious, concrete, and diverse support to fight terrorism and eradicate its movements, African countries must be, nonetheless, aware of the magnitude of the terrorist danger looming and threatening everyone, and most importantly, be mindful of the serious threat posed by the alliance between terrorism and separatism, not only on stability and security, but also on dismantling States, taking into account the repercussions of this action in terms of mass displacement, asylum, and the human tragedies they generate.

In light of these situations, We, as African Parliaments and African multilateral parliamentary organizations, are called upon to advocate for an urgent international strategy to fight terrorism in Africa, where the international community engages with all the available means. That must take place in parallel with the serious action with the governments of the concerned countries towards local development on the basis of a partnership that cuts across the traditional ways of support for development and enables the transformation of Africa's resources into wealth that produces jobs and includes all. Such actions would eliminate the fertile grounds where the cultures of radicalism, extremism, and terrorism thrive.

This is an opportunity to reiterate our solidarity with all the brotherly African countries that face terrorism with patience, determination, and strong will.

Honorable colleagues, the magnitude of this danger dictates a radical change in the international approach to dealing with terrorism in Africa, and this is an ethical responsibility rather than a political or strategic one. It also requires us, as African legislators, and representatives of the peoples, to put this demand at the forefront of our agenda in international parliamentary fora.

Ladies and gentlemen,

The aforementioned security challenge converges with the requirements of food security in Africa, and the humanitarian conditions food scarcity and shortage, and sometimes famine in some African regions, entail. Instability erodes development projects and obstructs all economic dynamics. It also increases the informal and unmonitored economy. Although we reject the description of Africa as an "afflicted" continent, as some doctrines like to qualify it, the assurance of security for all of Africa holds us accountable as Africans primarily. It also puts into question the notions of "international partnership" and "solidarity," as well as the position of Africa in international strategies.

The present war taking place in Eastern Europe has shown the degree to which the international geostrategic conditions impact the food situation in Africa, the level of repercussions of the system established by the global community on our African countries, and the great injustice from which our continent suffers. In this regard, prices of food staples have risen to unbearable levels, and inflation has reached unprecedented heights, hence overwhelming families and increasing public spending.

However, We, honorable colleagues, must raise the question: Are the food conditions, the acute shortage in supply, and the inability to provide for all our African citizens a fatality? I do not believe so. Our continent encloses more than 60% of arable lands of the world. From numerous regions of Africa flow billions of cubic meters of freshwater into oceans. African forests can provide for pastures for livestock that can feed an important portion of humanity. Moreover, the largest proportion of youth who can work and produce resides in our continent.

Where is the problem, then? It is true that climate imbalances heavily impact African agriculture, given the desertification, drought, and floods they engender. However, all these issues can be resolved and controlled if the international community shows the necessary political will. In this respect, I would like to raise the question about the degree of commitment of international donors and the powers who have benefitted for decades, and still benefit, from polluting the earth because of excessive manufacturing, to their pledges in the Conferences of Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change, particularly the one in Paris, COP21, and the one in Marrakesh, COP22, with regard to financing the “Green Climate Fund,” directed mainly at the developing countries suffering from global warming, including Africa that only contributes with an amount of 4% to greenhouse gas emissions.

There exist other pivotal factors that can be overcome and that hinder the development of food sources in Africa: agriculture, farming, and maritime fisheries. The poor financing does not permit the creation of structural and strategic projects that transform the resources of Africa in these areas into wealth. The unavailability of the required technologies renders agriculture, in the vast majority of our countries, a subsistence and traditional one. In addition, the poor ability to establish water-filling installations does not allow sustainable and highly productive irrigated crops to materialize. 

To subvert these equations, the international community must ditch its centric impulses and egoisms and its tendency towards prioritizing small categorical interests and work on transferring technologies, capital, skills, patents, scientific research results, and production technologies to the countries of our continent.

Ladies and gentlemen,

In addition to arable lands and human resources, our continent has huge marine resources. In this regard, it has 13 million square kilometers of seabed, 6.5 million square kilometers of continental shelf enclosing enormous resources, and 26,000 kilometers of coast, forming a vast area for intensive and advantageous continental and international commercial exchanges.

Let us imagine what these levers can provide as resources to produce food and develop pioneering food industries.

Besides, our continent encloses gigantic means to produce energy from renewable sources and can achieve global leadership in this area.

Along with technologies, financing, and skills, We must, within African Parliaments, remain keen to ensure the good governance of food production and distribution facilities. On this note, We must ensure the sustainability of agricultural production and the advancement of solidarity agriculture where women occupy a leading position.

All these actions require trust in our capacities and the imperative and importance of South-South Cooperation, and that we become aware that Africa is the continent of the future and of promising opportunities. Otherwise, why would it be today the subject of a fierce international competition, as evidenced by several mechanisms that are allegedly implemented for partnership with Africa?[1] And why do all major powers want to have economic influence in Africa amidst a context ruled by the logic of benefits?

Ladies and gentlemen,

In every African gathering, I remember the saying of His Majesty King Mohammed VI, may God glorify him, in his historic speech before the 28^th African Union Summit on January 31, 2017, in Addis Ababa, when His Majesty said: “It is time for Africa to benefit from Africa’s wealth. After decades of looting the riches of African lands, we must work to enable our land to enter an era of prosperity.” Thus ends the citation of His Majesty the King.

Following this wise Royal vision that seeks the interests of Africa, we must recall the leading agricultural projects that the Kingdom of Morocco undertakes with numerous brotherly African countries, based on a win-win principle, including farmhouses, the initiative of Adaptation of African Agriculture, and the pioneering projects of the Cherifian Office of Phosphates to develop and intensify African agriculture and provide African farmers with organic fertilizers.

Ladies and gentlemen,

Whether We are dealing with the fight against terrorism, the struggle to build peace, or the process to achieve development, democracy, and food security, We must adopt an approach of cooperation, move towards the future, and consolidate solidarity and just partnership, while relying on history, its morals, and its dynamics, and drawing lessons from wars and crises.

We must also ensure the respect of the cultural and institutional peculiarities of our African countries as a basis, horizon, and lever of development.

In all these missions, our national Parliaments assume tremendous responsibilities that We must take on with a constant determination that We must show when defending the interests of our continent.

I welcome you once again, and thank you for your keen listening.