These meetings, held on the sidelines of the 7th edition of "Halieutis" Fair, included Côte d'Ivoire's Minister of Fisheries and Animal Resources, Sidi Tiémoko Touré, Somalia's Minister of Fisheries Resources and the Blue Economy, Ahmed Hassan Adan, and Gabon's Minister of Fisheries and the Sea,Syrielle Zora Kassa, and aim to strengthen cooperative relations between Morocco and its African partners in the fields of fisheries and aquaculture.
These exchanges and discussions focused on opportunities for collaboration, sharing expertise, and strengthening partnerships in fisheries to promote sustainable and innovative fishing practices.
During these meetings, Driouich reaffirmed Morocco's commitment, under the leadership of His Majesty King Mohammed VI, to support the sustainable development of fisheries and aquaculture, with a focus on preserving fisheries resources, protecting marine ecosystems, while emphasizing the measures needed to develop an inclusive blue economy in Africa, through the exchange of scientific and technical experiences.
For their part, African ministers praised Morocco's expertise in fisheries and expressed their desire to strengthen partnerships with the Kingdom.
These exchanges also underscored the importance of South-South cooperation in addressing common challenges, such as the sustainable management of resources, the impact of climate change on fish stock mobility and availability, and the valorization of marine products.
They also allowed the identification of actions and initiatives to be implemented in the near future to invigorate the sector and contribute to the socio-economic development of the continent.
Driouich also held a bilateral meeting with the President of the Russian Federal Fisheries Agency, Ilya Shestakov, during which both parties praised the long-standing relations between Morocco and Russia in the fisheries sector, dating back to the 1960s, and emphasized the importance of successive agreements signed since 1992, which have enabled fruitful and mutually beneficial collaboration.
This meeting also served as an opportunity to discuss a new fisheries agreement between Morocco and Russia, which aims to meet the interests of both parties while integrating measures for the preservation of fisheries resources.
In this regard, discussions focused on strengthening cooperation in areas of common interest, such as scientific and technical cooperation, the training and employment of Moroccan sailors, optimizing fishing quotas, and financial compensation.
Driouich also met with the Under-Secretary of the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries, and Water Resources of the Sultanate of Oman, Yaqoob Khalfan Khamis Al Busaidi. Discussions focused on the importance of developing fisheries cooperation between the Kingdom of Morocco and the Sultanate of Oman in areas such as maritime training, rescue operations, monitoring fishing activities, and marketing marine products.
MAP: 06 February 2025
