Eu, morocco set to develop advanced status into advanced integration, joint statement

By Madison on mar 08, 2010

Granada – The European Union (EU) and Morocco commend the progress made within the framework of the Advanced Status, which should evolve into a new instrument to replace the EU-Morocco Action Plan.

    In a joint statement adopted in Granada by the first Morocco-EU Summit, both sides reaffirmed their commitment to establish a common economic area, marked by an advanced integration of the Moroccan economy in the EU.

    This objective can be made possible through concrete actions, such as the harmonisation of legislative frameworks in Morocco and the EU, the conclusion of a comprehensive Free Trade Agreement, economic and social cooperation, Morocco’s adherence to trans-European networks and sectoral cooperation.

    Morocco and the EU have agreed to intensify their joint efforts in all areas covered by the Advanced Status, but they have other ambitions.

    In this context, the EU and Morocco agreed to pay “special attention” to more concrete projects, notably the establishment of the EU-Morocco parliamentary commission, Morocco’s participation in EU programs and the establishment of a new instrument that will replace the EU-Morocco Action Plan.

    The Conference of Presidents of political groups in the European Parliament decided in January 2010 to establish a joint EU-Morocco parliamentary committee.
 
    Rabat and its 27 European partners hailed the “important” progress made in the last few months in the field of trade negotiations, which allowed for the conclusion of negotiations on agricultural products trading, processed agricultural products, fish and fishery products.

    These assets are a “significant step towards a comprehensive and detailed free trade agreement,” the two parties said in the joint statement.

    Morocco and the EU also agreed to develop the human dimension of bilateral partnership through the consolidation of cultural exchanges, the implication of new players and the promotion of cooperation between the civil societies of the two parties.

    According to the document, the EU and Morocco reaffirmed attachment to the consolidation of social rights and the fight against poverty, commending, in this regard, the anti-poverty program “the National Initiative for Human Development (INDH)”, launched in 2005, which aims to achieve sustained human development and carry out by 2015 the Millennium Development Goals (MDG).

    Concerning the issue of immigration, the two parties insisted on a comprehensive approach based on shared responsibility and common action which incorporates the fight against illegal immigration, management of legal immigration and the relation between migration and development. 

source: map