The Minister of Transport and Logistics, Abdelssamad Sekkouh, held talks today, Friday in Rabat, with the Minister of Mining, Blue Economy and Maritime Affairs of the Republic of Kenya, Hassan Ali Joho, on ways to enhance bilateral cooperation in the fields of maritime and air transport and logistics.
During this meeting, the two sides praised the momentum in the cooperation relations between Morocco and Kenya, addressing the prospects for cooperation in the field of air transport, where they agreed to conclude a memorandum of understanding for technical cooperation as soon as possible. They also discussed the issue of mutual support for their countries' nominations in the International Maritime Organization, and establishing close cooperation in the maritime field by strengthening the exchange of experiences in this field. In a statement to the Moroccan News Agency, Mr. Sekkouh stressed that this "fruitful" meeting was an opportunity to exchange views on the possibility of strengthening cooperation in the fields of maritime and air transport, especially in terms of exchanging maritime training experiences and the possibilities of linking the ports of Mombasa and Tangier Med. He also pointed out that "Morocco's experience in the field of maritime training represents a model that can be shared with Kenya, especially in the technical aspect related to training ship captains, in accordance with international standards." For his part, the Kenyan Minister explained that these discussions were an opportunity to explore ways to enhance cooperation between Kenya and Morocco, especially in the field of maritime transport, including talks related to the International Maritime Organization. He added that his country "supports Morocco's candidacy for category (C) within the organization, and Morocco, in turn, supports Kenya's candidacy for the same category, which will be voted on at the end of next November," stressing, in this regard, the importance of establishing joint structures and programs to push maritime cooperation between the two countries to broader horizons. This meeting reflects the positive dynamic witnessed by Moroccan-Kenyan relations, and the common desire to develop practical partnerships in the fields of maritime and air transport and logistics, in a way that serves the common interests of the two countries and strengthens interconnectedness in the African continent. (MAP)
