Fez – The Worldwide Network of Port Cities (WNPC) has announced that the city of Tangier in northern Morocco will host the 17th World Conference on Cities and Ports from May 11-13, 2022.
Mario Girard, President and CEO of the Quebec Port Authority, made the announcement on November 25 at the “AIVP Meetings” in Brussels. The conference was supposed to take place in 2020, but it was postponed because of the COVID pandemic.
The event brings together international stakeholders in sustainable development of port cities.
The World Conference on Cities and Ports is intended to size up the difficulties that port cities face, exchange expertise, and strengthen partnerships among AIVP members.
Morocco’s ambassador to Belgium and the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg, Mohamed Ameur, welcomed the nomination of Tangier to host the international conference.
The Moroccan official pointed out the city’s dynamic development over the past several years. He emphasized that this dynamism is motivated by a new vision of land-use planning aimed at revitalizing the Mediterranean coast.
Ameur said that the Tangier Med port has become the first container platform in the Mediterranean and Africa in less than 15 years. Citing the dynamic growth of Tangier, the ambassador said that Morocco is “a country on the move and in full metamorphosis.”
In a video conference, Mohamed Ouanaya, CEO of the Port of Tangier (SGPTV), said the city is going through a real economic rebirth as a result of the implementation of various structural and large investments.
Read also: African Development Bank: Morocco’s Tangier-Med Port is a model for Nigeria
Tangier Med port has been receiving international recognition after it established itself as a model port in Africa. The US Charge d’affaires, David Greene, has described the port as the “Gateway to Africa.”
The US embassy in Rabat quoted the Charge d’Affaires as identifying the Moroccan port as one of the “largest container ports in the world” in a readout of Green’s visit to the port back in October.
The latest Llyod’s List ranking also described Morocco’s Tangier Med Port as the greatest container port in Africa.
The port is ranked 25th in the world, outperforming large Mediterranean ports such as Spain’s Algeciras.
