Morocco, Guinea Deepen Strategic Ties by Signing 25 Cooperation Agreements

Casablanca – Morocco and Guinea agreed on Tuesday to give new momentum to their strategic partnership, signing 25 cooperation agreements and expanding plans for economic and development cooperation.

This came during the eighth session of the Morocco-Guinea Joint Cooperation Commission in Conakry, co-chaired by Moroccan Foreign Minister Nasser Bourita and Guinean Foreign Minister Morissanda Kouyaté.

The two sides strengthened the legal framework for their cooperation by signing agreements covering the economy, finance, air transport, customs, agriculture, energy, tourism, justice, healthcare, meteorology and climatology, ports, housing and urban planning, sports, culture, handicrafts, higher education, scientific research and innovation, academic scholarships, and vocational training.

The two ministers also reviewed bilateral cooperation and reaffirmed their ambition to elevate partnership to a strategic level based on mutual interests, shared prosperity, and sustainable development. They also agreed to pursue an exemplary model of South-South cooperation.

Bourita welcomed President Mamadi Doumbouya’s Simandou 2040 development program and said Morocco stands ready to share its development experience with Guinea, in line with the guidelines of King Mohammed VI.

Morocco also expressed its readiness to contribute to the implementation of Simandou 2040 across several priority areas, including strategic infrastructure, security, fisheries, healthcare, industrial and agricultural processing, food security, skills development, water management, and energy.

Read also: Guinea Reaffirms Support for Morocco’s Sovereignty Over Western Sahara

Guinea welcomed Morocco’s Atlantic initiatives, including the Royal Initiative on the Atlantic African States Process and the initiative to provide Sahel countries with access to the Atlantic Ocean. Conakry also welcomed progress on the African-Atlantic Gas Pipeline, in which Guinea participates and which has entered its operational launch phase.

The ministers also welcomed the longstanding ties of friendship, cooperation, and solidarity between the two countries, as well as the mutual esteem and respect between King Mohammed VI and President Doumbouya.

They pledged to follow up on the implementation of the new agreements and further consolidate bilateral relations.

During the meeting, Guinea also reaffirmed its support for Morocco’s sovereignty over the Western Sahara.

Kouyaté reiterated Guinea’s support for the Autonomy Plan under Moroccan sovereignty as the sole solution to the dispute, while pointing to Guinea’s Consulate General in Dakhla, which opened in January 2020. Bourita thanked Guinea for its continued support in regional and international forums.