Morocco, EU Sign Implementation Document of PRIMA Scientific Cooperation Agreement

Rabat – Morocco and the European Union have signed the administrative arrangements for the implementation of a science and technology cooperation agreement.

The administrative document sets out the conditions for Morocco’s collaboration in the Partnership for Research and Innovation in the Mediterranean Area (PRIMA).

Moroccan ambassador to the European Union Ahmed Rahhou signed the agreement on Monday, November 4, in Brussels along with the director of International Cooperation at the Research and Innovation General Directorate of the European Commission, Maria Cristina Russo.

Morocco is now among the 19 countries around the Mediterranean region to form the Partnership for research and innovation initiative.

The EU’s PRIMA is the largest research and innovation program in the Mediterranean region.  One of the program’s objectives is to strengthen cooperation in the field of research and innovation in Mediterranean countries to develop innovative solutions for the challenges of sustainable food production and water security in the Mediterranean region.

The initiative is based on three pillars, including sustainable management of water in arid and semi-arid Mediterranean regions,” a sustainable agricultural system facing Mediterranean environmental constraints,” and “a Mediterranean food chain for regional and local development.”

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In October 2018, the European Parliament adopted the scientific and technological cooperation agreement between Morocco and the European Union.

Morocco and the EU signed PRIMA in April 2018 at the headquarters of the Council of the European Union.

Within the agreement, Moroccan researchers will participate in projects with European and Mediterranean research institutions. 

The agreement is a long-term project spanning 10 years (2018-2028).