After the United States, NATO chooses Morocco to train African armies

The Royal Armed Forces and NATO are preparing to organise a session of the Defence Education Enhancement Programme (DEEP) in Morocco, Africa Intelligence reports. It is to take place before the end of 2026 or at the beginning of 2027 and will focus on training African armies.

The initiative is not starting from scratch. In its 2025 annual report, NATO states that Morocco has already launched trilateral cooperation involving the Alliance, the kingdom and African third countries in order to develop the skills of their non-commissioned officers.

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The Alliance also specifies that the Royal Armed Forces have adopted the DEEP reference programmes for training non-commissioned officers in their various branches. The official DEEP programme portal had already mentioned discussions aimed at using this Moroccan experience to support other African armed forces.

This development extends the strengthening of the strategic partnership between Morocco and NATO, particularly in the areas of military training, interoperability and defence education.

Morocco is becoming a military training platform

The move runs parallel to the one undertaken with Washington. On 13 July, the Royal Armed Forces and AFRICOM signed an agreement to establish the Africa Multidomain Training and Experimentation Center in Tan-Tan in Morocco.

According to AFRICOM, by 2030 this centre is to bring together a multidomain training area, a drone academy and an innovation and experimentation centre. The objective therefore goes beyond training Moroccan military personnel alone: the facilities are also intended to serve the development of African capabilities.

This regional role is already beginning to take shape. During African Lion 2026, a first training session devoted to drones, organised in Agadir, brought together Moroccan, Nigerian, Ghanaian and American military personnel. The joint exercises also enabled the FAR to continue their integration with Western forces, following in particular the first African test of the Link-16 military communications system.

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With the future American facility in Tan-Tan and now NATO’s DEEP programme, Morocco is gradually positioning itself as a site for training, experimentation and military cooperation for forces from across the African continent.