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Rabat – Renowned engineer and inventor Rachid Yazami has offered Morocco the unique opportunity to be the first to exploit his promising new battery technology. As a participant in an October 13 webinar on Morocco’s vision for education, organized by the CDG Institute in Rabat, Yazami explained that his new technology triples the charging speed for electric cars.
Technological opportunity
The renowned Moroccan engineer and scientist stated at the virtual event that he has offered his latest invention to Morocco as he sees it as a key technology to create jobs. Rachid Yazami also hopes to provide inspiration for young Moroccans to explore and innovate.
The battery technology would charge electric devices, such as electric cars, up to three times as fast and is likely to earn the attention of major international players such as car manufacturer Tesla. Yazami sees such promise in the technology that he estimates it could allow Morocco to exceed the success of Tesla, Elon Musk’s company worth $400 billion.
However, Yazami’s offer comes with a set time limit. He urges Moroccan authorities to invest in and implement it soon to make Morocco a powerhouse in battery technology. The inventor expressed frustration with ever-present “obstacles” in Morocco, and gave officials until the end of the year to make serious progress.
Frustrations with education
If Morocco fails to exploit the opportunity Rachid Yazami is offering, he fears that traditional technology hubs in the West as well as China will gladly invest. Yazami further urged Moroccan authorities to make education more efficient and future-proof, seeing little innovation in the sector since independence.
“The Moroccan educational system has not been able to achieve its major revolution,” Yazami told participants in the webinar.
He compared Moroccan education to that of Singapore, where he lives, and urged for a more flexible and innovative approach. He encouraged Moroccans to keep up with the “highly competitive world” that we live in and reverse the “brain drain” of young Moroccan talent leaving for greener pastures abroad.
Renowned inventor
Moroccan authorities could be missing the opportunity of a lifetime if they fail to jump on Rachid Yazami’s offer. The renowned scientist was one of the key inventors of lithium battery technology. Yazami’s graphite anode innovation now features in almost every mobile phone and laptop around the world. His research in the 1980s led to a technological revolution in ever smaller consumer devices that have become a global norm.
For his efforts and accomplishments, he has received a variety of honors. These include a Royal Medal from King Mohammed VI in 2014 and the Charles Stark Draper Prize for Engineering the same year. He received the French knighthood “Chevalier de la Legion d’honneur,” France’s highest order of merit, in 2016.
His co-invention of the lithium-ion battery received the 2019 Nobel Prize in Chemistry yet Rachid Yazami himself was controversially omitted among the honorees.
With tough economic times ahead because of the global pandemic’s economic impact, Morocco finds itself with an opportunity that could change its destiny. Authorities have until the end of the year to take Yazami up on his offer and decide to invest in the future of Morocco’s youth.
