Morocco Reaffirms Strategic Commitment to Peace and Stability in Africa

Morocco has made peace, security, and stability in Africa a strategic priority under the leadership of King Mohammed VI, Head of Government Aziz Akhannouch said Sunday in Luanda.

Akhannouch, who represented King Mohammed VI at an extraordinary African Union session on strengthening mechanisms for conflict prevention and resolution, stressed Morocco’s continued contribution to mediation, peacekeeping, post-conflict recovery, and efforts to prevent crises before they escalate.

The session brought together African leaders and officials in the Angolan capital to address ways to reinforce the continent’s capacity to prevent and resolve conflicts.

Akhannouch said Morocco’s approach is based on the understanding that peace, security, and development are closely interconnected. He argued that lasting conflict prevention requires action on the underlying economic, social, institutional, climate, and humanitarian factors that can fuel instability.

He stressed that peace cannot be built solely through responses after crises erupt. Instead, African countries must invest in the conditions that support long-term stability, including opportunities for young people, greater participation for women, employment, and stronger food, water, and energy security.

Infrastructure development, continental connectivity, and economic integration should also form part of this broader peace-building effort, he said.

“It is necessary to gradually move from a logic of conflict management to a logic of building the conditions for peace and preventing conflicts before they break out,” Akhannouch said.

The head of government also highlighted the King’s emphasis on effective and concrete African South-South cooperation, with the well-being of African citizens at its center.

According to Akhannouch, Morocco seeks to translate African solidarity into tangible projects in areas such as food security, water, energy, healthcare, training, investment, and infrastructure.

He also pointed to a growing range of challenges that could undermine peace and stability across the continent. These include climate change and water stress, terrorism, transnational organized crime, and the spread of non-state armed groups.

Such groups, he said, pose risks to state authority, sovereignty, and territorial integrity. Akhannouch also warned against external interference and the growing threat of disinformation facilitated by the misuse of modern technologies.

Akhannouch further called for greater African ownership of the continent’s security and development priorities.

While Africa needs strong and balanced international partnerships, he said it must also strengthen its ability to finance and sustain its own priorities, including peacebuilding initiatives and long-term development projects.

He argued that achieving this goal requires greater confidence in Africa’s own resources and capabilities, alongside stronger mechanisms to ensure the sustainability of its initiatives.

Akhannouch attended the Luanda session alongside Foreign Minister Nasser Bourita, Morocco’s Permanent Representative to the African Union and the UN Economic Commission for Africa Mohamed Arrouchi, and Morocco’s Ambassador to Angola Saadia Alaoui.

MWN with MAP