Morocco–Spain: Details of the 14 agreements signed during the 13th High-Level Meeting

Here are the details of the 14 agreements signed:

Diplomacy and foreign policy

Five memorandums of understanding were concluded between Nasser Bourita and his Spanish counterpart José Manuel Albares Bueno. The first concerns the field of feminist foreign policy, whose purpose is to establish the modalities through which the participants intend to promote dialogue, exchange experiences and mutual learning, and deepen collaboration in promoting a feminist foreign policy and integrating gender equality into all areas of foreign policy.

The second aims to strengthen the partnership between the parties, as well as establish a dynamic and sustainable cooperation framework in the training of young diplomats and the exchange of experiences and information in the field of diplomacy and international relations.

The third aims to develop training mobility programs for young diplomats to enable them to acquire updated and in-depth knowledge regarding each country, as well as the major policies and actions implemented there.

In the fourth, the two parties agree on technical support for the Official Printing Office in the implementation of its new strategy and action plan for modernizing and developing its institutional, organizational, and operational capacities, as well as the mechanisms for monitoring and establishing reliable indicators for its evaluation.

The last concerns cooperation in several fields, notably the exchange of experiences, methodologies, and knowledge related to document and archive management, digitization of documentary heritage, exchange of digital copies, development of online access mechanisms, and long-term digital preservation…

Judicial Cooperation

Abdellatif Ouahbi concluded an MoU with José Manuel Albares Bueno, through which the two ministries plan to create a working group to study the technological, legal, and organizational possibilities and capacities to send and receive international judicial cooperation requests electronically between the two countries.

Taxation and New Technologies

The strengthening of the exchange of professional experiences and know-how in the fields of tax base, tax control, and tax collection was the subject of an MoU between Nadia Fettah Alaoui and José Manuel Albares Bueno. It also aims to provide mutual support for adapting to global tax developments and international tax reforms and to explore collaboration opportunities in the field of new technologies to improve the efficiency and effectiveness of tax administration activities.

Combating Hate Speech

A cooperation framework between the signatories, namely Bourita and Elma Saiz Delgado, Spanish Minister of Inclusion, Social Security, and Migration, concerns the prevention, detection, and fight against hate speech in all its forms, through an integrated, continuous, and sustainable approach, particularly when such speech targets migrant workers.

Scientific Research

Between Bourita and Oscar Puente Santiago, Minister of Transport and Sustainable Mobility, an MoU was concluded to define the terms of collaboration between the National Center for Scientific and Technical Research and the National Geographic Institute in the fields of studying seismicity, geodynamics, and lithospheric structure in the Ibero-Maghreb zone of common interest to Morocco and Spain, as well as monitoring through instrumental observation networks and earthquake and tsunami alerts in this region.

Agriculture and Fisheries

Ahmed El Bouari and his counterpart Luis Planas Puchades agreed to strengthen cooperation in the agricultural and agri-food sectors. The MoU emphasizes the development of agroecology, farm modernization, food security and sovereignty, as well as training and exchange of technical expertise. It promotes sustainability, innovation, and resilience to climate change, while encouraging the development of rural areas and agri-food production.

Meanwhile, Zakia Dirouch and Luis Planas Puchades propose establishing close coordination and a mutual assistance relationship to achieve various objectives, notably combating illegal, unreported, and unregulated fishing using fishing vessel monitoring systems and the use of digital systems for managing and validating catch certificates in the context of international trade in fishery products, as well as strengthening collaboration and information exchange on imports and exports of fishery products.

Culture and Sports

Two MoUs were signed between Mohamed Saad Berrada and his Spanish counterpart María del Pilar Alegría. The first aims to define the terms and conditions of collaboration between the parties for the effective provision by the Moroccan party of its civil servant teaching staff in Spanish state-run educational institutions located in the Kingdom of Morocco.

The second aims to establish a framework enabling the two countries to initiate sports cooperation, in accordance with their competencies, by prioritizing the exchange of knowledge in various areas, notably combating doping, harassment, and discrimination in sports, supporting and promoting sports for people with disabilities, while ensuring participation in courses, seminars, symposiums, and conferences organized in each country in fields of mutual interest.