Page 283 - MOE ENGLISH PR REPORT - JULY 2024

7/29/24, 3:18 PM UAE, Morocco finalise CEPA terms - City 1016
Dr Thani bin Ahmed Al Zeyoudi welcomed the latest step in the UAE’s foreign agenda. He said, “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, “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 $152.4 billion and is expected to

grow by a further 3.5 per cent in 2024. While agriculture remains the largest employer, the services sector is the
largest contributor to GDP accounting for 54 per cent, with the industrial sector contributing 23 per cent.

The UAE’s CEPA programme aims to increase the country’s non-oil foreign trade to AED 4 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 $710 billion, a 12.6 per cent increase on 2022 – and 34.7 per cent more than 2021.

Morocco is the latest African nation to conclude CEPA terms with the UAE, following Mauritius, Kenya and Congo-

Brazzaville.

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