Morocco and UAE Finalize Landmark Economic Partnership Agreement

Eleven years after the entry into force of the first free trade agreement between Morocco and the United Arab Emirates, Ryad Mezzour, Moroccan Minister of Industry and Trade, and Thani bin Ahmed Al Zeyoudi, Emirati Minister of State for Foreign Trade, signed a joint declaration in Rabat to announce the successful conclusion of the negotiations and the finalization of the provisions of the agreement. The CEPA program aims to expand the network of trade and investment partners of the United Arab Emirates in order to achieve the strategic objective of increasing the country’s non-oil foreign trade to 4,000 billion AED by 2031. This ambitious goal reflects the United Arab Emirates’ commitment to economic diversification and strengthening its presence in the global market. Thus, the agreement will not only strengthen bilateral relations with Morocco, but it will also help position the United Arab Emirates as a key player in the global economy.

"This agreement goes beyond the simple liberalization of trade and includes many areas related to investment and economic cooperation. It is a model framework for establishing a solid basis to raise the level of joint cooperation in the fields of economy and investment," said Mezzour. "The CEPA between the UAE and Morocco is an important addition to the UAE’s comprehensive economic agreement program that it continues to implement. The goal is to expand our network of trade and investment partners globally, by establishing promising partnerships with markets of strategic importance at both the regional and international levels," said the Emirati minister, adding that the focus will be on priority sectors such as renewable energy, tourism, infrastructure, mining, food security, transportation, logistics, information technology and communications.

It should be noted that non-oil foreign trade between the United Arab Emirates and Morocco reached $1.3 billion in 2023, an increase of 30% compared to 2022 and a growth of more than 83% compared to pre-pandemic levels in 2019. The UAE is also the largest Arab investor in Morocco, with total investments of $15 billion in various strategic projects. The sixth largest economy in Africa, Morocco reached a GDP of $152.4 billion in 2023, with a projected growth of 3.5% by the end of 2024.