RABAT: The United Arab Emirates and the Kingdom of Morocco have finalised the terms of a Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA) that will launch a new chapter of mutually beneficial trade and investment ties between the two countries.

The conclusion of negotiations was confirmed by the signing of a joint statement by Dr. Thani bin Ahmed Al Zeyoudi, Minister of State for Foreign Trade, and Ryad Mezzour, Minister of Industry and Trade of the Kingdom of Morocco.

Upon implementation, the UAE-Morocco CEPA will facilitate the free flow of goods and services by reducing or removing tariffs, eliminating unnecessary barriers to trade, improving market access for services, enhancing customs harmonisation and establishing flexible rules of origin for goods.

It will also establish platforms for investment and private-sector collaboration in priority sectors such as renewable energy, tourism, infrastructure, mining, food security, transport, logistics, and ICT.

The two nations shared US$1.3 billion in non-oil trade in 2023, an increase of 30 percent on 2022 and 83 percent more than was recorded in 2019. The UAE is the largest Arab investor in Morocco with more than US$15 billion invested in a variety of strategic projects.

Dr. Thani bin Ahmed Al Zeyoudi welcomed the latest step in the UAE’s foreign agenda. He said, “The UAE-Morocco Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement is a valuable addition to our CEPA program. Our two brotherly nations already enjoy strong bilateral economic relations, and this agreement will enable us to further develop areas of mutual benefit, particularly in sectors such as tourism, energy, manufacturing and agriculture, and generate long-term prosperity for both peoples. Morocco is one the largest and most competitive economies in Africa and we look forward to working in unison to create new opportunities for our private sectors.”

Ryad Mezzour, Minister of Industry and Trade of the Kingdom of Morocco, stated, “I signed today with my brother, Thani bin Ahmed Al Zeyoudi, Minister of State for Foreign Trade, a joint declaration announcing the conclusion of negotiations between our two countries on a Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement. This Agreement is part of the implementation of the Declaration signed by His Majesty King Mohammed VI and President His Highness Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan on 4th December, 2023 in Abu Dhabi, which aims to establish an innovative, renewed and solid partnership between the two brotherly countries.

“The agreement, which strengthens the legal arsenal between the two countries, aims to support the development of trade and investment, by opening new opportunities to upgrade the level of joint cooperation in economic and commercial fields,” he added.

Morocco is the sixth largest economy on the African continent. In 2023, its GDP was US$ 152.4 billion and is expected to grow by a further 3.5 percent in 2024. While agriculture remains the largest employer, the services sector is the largest contributor to GDP accounting for 54 percent, with the industrial sector contributing 23 percent.

The UAE’s CEPA programme aims to increase the country’s non-oil foreign trade to AED4 trillion by expanding relations with strategically important markets around the world. In 2023, the UAE’s non-oil trade in goods reached an all-time high of US$710 billion, a 12.6 percent increase on 2022 – and 34.7 percent more than 2021. Morocco is the latest African nation to conclude CEPA terms with the UAE, following Mauritius, Kenya and Congo-Brazzaville.