Rabat – Moroccan pharmaceutical company Laprophan signed on Friday a cooperation agreement with China’s Sinopharm, strengthening the link between the two countries in the sector.

The agreement encompasses all areas of healthcare and medicine except vaccines, which are managed under separate agreements with Sinopharm.

The cooperation will include pharmaceutical preparations, active ingredients, as well as the production of consumables, medical devices, and equipment.

A joint press release added that the agreement also includes the transfer of technologies with plans in the future for local production of certain pharmaceuticals.

“Thanks to the joint efforts of both parties, the signing of the strategic cooperation agreement sets a new milestone in cooperation between China and Morocco in the field of medicine and health,” Sinopharm’s International Vice President Yan Bing said.

Meanwhile, Laprophan’s President Farid Bennis said the signing will make it possible to respond better to Morocco’s health needs and strengthen the country’s health security.

The cooperation is part of China’s Belt and Road Initiative, the two executives noted, calling for the expansion of cooperation between the two countries.

China and Africa

The cooperation should allow Laprophan to reach more countries in Africa and work with Sinopharm in the countries where it operates.

The agreement would strengthen Morocco’s position as a gateway into trade and cooperation with other African countries.

Morocco officially became the first African state in China’s Belt and Road Initiative, a global infrastructure development program by the Chinese state to invest in hundreds of countries and organizations.

Zhang Yuyou, associate professor at the Institute of Middle Eastern Studies at China’s Northwest University, said last year that China’s cooperation with Morocco is expected to revolve around “Morocco’s geographical advantages.”

Morocco also implemented a strategy in 2021 to start locally producing Sinopharm vaccines, at a time when most African states were suffering from a lack of supply, positioning Morocco to potentially help alleviate some of the continent’s healthcare worries.

The construction of a COVID vaccine manufacturing plant was inaugurated in the country in January 2022, with hopes to start production by 2024.