Rabat – Niger has emphasized the importance of Morocco’s proposed initiative to facilitate access to the Atlantic ocean for the countries of the Sahel.
Niger’s Minister of Foreign Affairs Bakary Yaou Sangare said that this vision stems from Morocco’s desire to promote the co-development of the African continent in general and the Sahel region in particular.
Sangare made his remarks during the ministerial coordination meeting held in Marrakech on Saturday to discuss the Moroccan initiative.
“Niger lends its full support to this commendable initiative that reinforces our convictions and the hope of our populations for a well-being to which they legitimately aspire,” he said.
The minister emphasized that his country hopes that the royal initiative will offer real opportunities including commercialization of the country’s resources, as well as accelerating regional connectivity and trade flows “for the shared prosperity of Morocco and the Sahel countries.”
Morocco called up the ministerial meeting to emphasize the initiative’s potential in contributing to the continent’s development.
In his Green March speech in November, King Mohammed VI emphasized the significance of the Atlantic coast, describing it as Morocco’s gateway to Africa and the Americas.
“Hence my keen desire to rehabilitate our national coastline including the part in the Moroccan Sahara region bordering the Atlantic, and re-engineer this geopolitical space at the African level,” he said.
The monarch said his goal is to transform the Atlantic region into a space for human interaction and economic integration, and to facilitate connectivity between the different countries bordering the Atlantic.
“To keep pace with the economic progress and urban expansion witnessed in Moroccan Sahaan cities, we need to pursue our efforts to develop a maritime economy that contributes to prosperity in the region and serves its inhabitants,” the King added.
