Joint Statutory Meeting of Standing Committees under Pan-African Parliament Kicks Off at Moroccan Parliament
The joint statutory meeting of Standing Committees on Trade, Customs, and Immigration Matters, and on Transportation, Industry, Communications, Energy, Science and Technology under the Pan-African Parliament, started on Monday, March 2nd at the Moroccan Parliament. The meeting takes place on March 2-6th.
The opening session was marked by the address of Speaker of House of Representatives Habib El Malki. Mr. El Malki affirmed in his speech that Africa has always been a reference to Moroccan civilization, history, and culture. He also added that Morocco has always been engaged in the essential issues and concerns of Africa.
Also, the House’s Speaker highlighted that Africa has become a destination of modern international aspirations, and has become at the heart of interests of world countries and international economic and financial institutions, given its population of 1,3 billion peoples, vast surface, diversity of natural resources, and its material and immaterial assets that have not yet been utilized appropriately.
Besides, Mr. El Malki called for speeding up the pace of economic integration in Africa, reviewing the rules of globalization in a way that benefits developing countries, and the importance of the emergence of new political and economic elites in Africa in all sectors. In the same respect, he lauded the vision of HM King Mohammed VI on building “A new Africa that is proud of its identity and lives up to its time. A new Africa that is free of ideological chains and remnants of the past. A new Africa that is daring and proactive.”
For his part, First Deputy Speaker of the House of Councilors Abdessamad Qayouh affirmed that “Kigali’s Agreement on the Establishment of an African Continental Free-Trade Zone (ZLECAF),” implemented on May 30th, 2019, challenges specifically the representatives of African Parliaments to conform local legislations to its articles and the attached protocols. Another challenge that the agreement poses is cooperation with government sectors to achieve homogeneity between commercial, financial and customs policies, either in bilateral or multilateral agreements concluded between African countries or the ones concluded between African regional economic communities.
As for the second deputy chairperson of the Pan-African Parliament, Ms. Haidara Aichata expressed on this occasion her gratitude to the Moroccan Parliament for hosting this important meeting. She also highlighted that the Pan-African Parliament is concomitant with local Parliaments in implementing legislation and agreements on the African level. Also, she noted that Morocco was a pioneer in promoting economic and commercial exchanges in Africa, noting that it is the leading African country as regards the growth of its trade with African countries.
In his statement, Delegate of the African Union in Charge of Trade and Industry Albert M. Muchanga stressed the imperative of speeding up the ratification of all African countries on the “Kigali Agreement on Establishing an African Continental Free-Trade Zone (ZLECAF).” However, Chairperson of Standing Committee on Trade, Customs, and Immigration Matters under the Pan-African Parliament Mc Henry Venaani affirmed the importance of paying particular attention to youth and women as they are the richness of Africa and the engine of development.
For his part, Minister of Industry, Trade, Digital, and Green Economy Moulay Hafid Alami stated that trade between African countries has not yet met the aspirations of African peoples, and still undergoes many problems relating to borders and difficulties of circulation of people and transportation of goods. He also noted that the implementation of the free-trade agreement between African countries is a tool to overcome this situation and enhance the performance of Africa and push its development wheel forward. In the same respect, Mr. Hafid Alami called for stimulating African enterprises and promoting industry and local African products, in addition to speeding up the establishment of an African common market.
In another statement, Minister Delegate in Charge of African Cooperation Mohcine Jazouli affirmed that the “African Continental Free-Trade Zone ZLECAF" is a lever for development in Africa. He also stressed the importance of developing infrastructure and transportation to provide means for the success of commercial and economic exchanges between African countries. Besides, he called for simplifying procedures and processes, and the adoption of flexible mechanisms to make of ZLECAF a reality.
The proceedings of the joint statutory meeting of Standing Committees on Trade, Customs, and Immigration Matters, and on Transportation, Industry, Communications, Energy, Science and Technology under the Pan-African Parliament will end on Friday, March 6th. The meeting takes place with the participation of ministers, representatives of local parliaments, regional and continental unions, and experts. The participants will tackle legal, institutional, logistic, and technological aspects relating to trade and transportation. They will also discuss the role of local parliaments in promoting and supporting commercial exchanges between African countries.
On the sidelines of the meeting, the members of the Committees mentioned above will visit the Tanger-Med port to review the assets it encloses as it is a bridge of international trade in the region.