RABAT, Nov 8 (Reuters) - Moroccos Attijariwafa Bank said onFriday it had agreed with State-owned Export-Import Bank ofChina (ExIm) to set up a 5 billion dollar fund to promoteAfrican exports to China and industrial zones on the continent.

The fund, to be financed by China's ExIm, will invest in theAfrican countries where Attijariwafa Bank operates, the Moroccanbank said in a statement.

Besides Morocco, Attijariwafa Bank operates in 25 countriesincluding 14 in Africa and has about 20,000 employees.

The deal was signed in Shanghai on the sidelines of China'sInternational Import Exposition, the statement said.

Attijariwafa Bank reported a 4.9% year-on-year rise in its2019 first half net profit attributable to shareholders to 2.9billion dirhams ($303 million). Last year, the banks net profitstood at 5.7 billion dirhams.

(Reporting by Ahmed EljechtimiEditing by Peter Graff) ((ahmed.eljechtimi@thomsonreuters.com;))