ANALYSIS, ACHIEVEMENTS AND REASONS WHY SOME OF THE
AGREEMENTS HAVE NOT BEEN EFFECTIVE.
Since the signing of the Memorandum of Understanding between
Morocco and Ghana, several events followed the efforts of the two countries
towards the promotion of their cooperation.
The First was the re-establishment of the Embassy of
Ghana in Morocco (Rabat).Then there was the establishment of a programme
between Moroccan agency for international cooperation and the Ghanaian Ministry
of Education to jointly fund Ghanaian students who wish to pursue their studies
in Universities and other educational institutions in Morocco.
Since September 2002 till present, about 208 Ghanaian students
are currently pursuing their studies in Morocco. Some of whom have already
completed their studies and have returned to Ghana.
Other significant events in the field of sport and culture
were held between the two countries all these events being within the framework
of the promotion of bilateral co operations.
Some examples include friendly games organized between the
Moroccan and Ghanaian National teams. Also, the embassy of Ghana in
collaboration with the Moroccan Ministry of Culture organized several cultural
and artistic exhibitions in Rabat, all in an effort to further develop
relations between the two countries as well as to familiarize the Moroccan
public with Ghanaian cultures.
Concerning the agreement on the reciprocal promotion and
protection of investment, a number of initiatives have been undertaken
primarily by the private sector. Most investment initiatives have been and are
still been made by private companies.
One of the most important initiatives that can be mentioned is
that of the largest Moroccan telecommunications company Known as Maroc Telecom,
which is preparing to invest in the Ghanaian telecommunications sector.
Some supermarkets like Koala (in Ghana) also import goods from
Morocco for its supplies. However, a lot still needs to be done within the
frame work of this agreement in other to attract the private sector to make use
of these agreements to further develop the climate of business between the two
countries.
The agreement of cooperation in the field of tourism and
that of the air service agreement can be considered the most effective among
the five existing agreements, even though the air service agreement is still
provisional , it has however been operational since January 2007.The Moroccan
Air company,(Royal Air Maroc) began direct flights between
Casablanca(Morocco)and Accra(Ghana).
Concerning the agreement on tourism, ever since its entry into
force on 20th January 2004, three different groups of trainers in
the field of Ghanaian tourism have undertaken some training in various Tourism
institutions in Morocco under the framework of technical cooperation between
Ghana and Morocco. A total of eighteen trainers have undertaken these courses
funded by the Moroccan authorities. But with respect to provisions made by the
agreements on cooperation in tourism, much remains to be done especially for
the creation of institutes of tourism in Ghana and on the help of Moroccan
experts in assessing the social and economic impact of tourism in Ghana.
It is only the agreements on maritime fisheries and the MOU
concerning mining and geological fields that has not seen that much
improvement. A lot still remains to be done by the two countries in other to
strengthen their cooperation in this area. Both countries have a lot of
experience and technical know-how to share especially in these two sectors
mentioned above. And their experience can be attributed to the fact that Ghana
has a long experience in the Mining of gold, diamonds and bauxite where as
Morocco, has extensive experience in phosphate mining. Together, both countries
could share their experiences while taking advantage of the benefits that could
be derived.
On the other hand, the cooperation agreement in Marine
Fisheries has unfortunately not seen much progress. Even though this agreement
is one of the most detailed.
I finally conclude that, for the five years of cooperation
between the two countries, a lot of initiatives have been undertaken by Ghana
and Morocco. These initiatives could be attributed to the Ghanaian Government's
desire to strengthen its relations with Morocco. A desire that has been
supplemented by the efforts and good works of the Embassy of Ghana here in
Morocco as well as that of Morocco established in Ghana.
On the other hand the efforts of the Moroccan government and
the willingness of His Majesty King Mohammed The VI especially in all matters
relating to the development of South-South cooperation have contributed to the
acceleration of all initiatives towards the promotion of cooperation between
the Republic of Ghana and the Kingdom of Morocco.
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