The network holds annual events to celebrate Morocco’s culture and economic potential, inviting entrepreneurs to explore the assets each Moroccan city holds.
Rabat – The US-based Moroccan American Network shared the agenda of the 6th annual Morocco Day event, which will take place on January 17-19.
The event gathers analysts, trade experts, and academics to discuss different themes annually.
This year, the event will use the slogan: “Tourism and Handicrafts : Two Pillars for Leveraging and Repositioning the Moroccan Economy in the Post-Epidemic World.”
The panels will dedicate the opening event of “Morocco Day 2021” to celebrate Martin Luther King, the American civil rights icon, and Moroccan explorer of North America, Mostafa El-Zemouri, nicknamed “the first great African man in America.”,
The press release the Moroccan-American Network shared with Morocco World News said El Zemouri is considered the “first African to set foot on the land of America.” Zemouri explored large swaths of North Africa as part of Spanish colonial expeditions in the sixteenth century.
Experts will also explore the possibility of partnerships between businessmen and entrepreneurs from the southern cities of Laayoune, Dakhla, as well as the coastal city of Essaouira and others in the Washington-Virginia area.
The network chose the three cities based on closing suggestions of participants in 2019’s Morocco Day.
The event will serve as an opportunity to explore the region’s assets and resources, as well gauging the potential for urban development.
“This year’s session celebrates – like in every year – the three Moroccan cities because they represent the African depth and a Moroccan natural and cultural diversity,” their statement said.,This depth and diversity originates from the unique resources in the fields of tourism and handicrafts available locally and because of their historical and cultural symbolism,” the network said.
The event will also be an opportunity for participants from the US and Morocco to celebrate the strong relations linking both countries.
The celebrations of Morocco Day will come just a month after US President Donald Trump decided to recognize the Moroccan sovereignty over Western Sahara. The recognition advanced Morocco-US strong ties further, with both countries vowing to reinforce cooperation.
The US further vowed to increase investments in southern Morocco. Trump announced his country’s decision to open a consulate in Dakhla as part of his country’s support for Morocco’s territorial integrity.
The Morocco Day this year will also commemorate the 200th anniversary of the friendship between Morocco and the US, as well as the 15-year old Free Trade Agreement between the two countries.
“This agreement contributed to doubling the value of bilateral exchanges between the two countries, and Morocco is the only African country that is linked to a free trade agreement with the United States of America. According to this agreement, the Kingdom embraces more than 150 American companies, and the number may double in the next few years,” the network said.
Among discussions, panels will discuss the US decision to recognize Morocco’s sovereignty over Western Sahara, tourism, and handicrafts as part of Morocco’s economy and cultural pillars.
