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China-funded smart city to bring tech and jobs to Morocco

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China-funded smart city to bring tech and jobs to Morocco

2024-09-08 00:48 Last Updated At:04:17

The new industrial district of Mohammed VI Tangier Tech City, a joint Chinese-Moroccan project, is taking shape in northern Morocco's coastal city of Tangier.

The project was one of many agreed between China and Morocco during the visit of Morocco's King Mohammed VI to China in 2016.

Construction began in the second half of last year and the new city will eventually cover approximately 2,000 hectares and host over 200 multinational companies in a range of free trade industrial zones, technology hubs, residential areas and commercial spaces.

"The investment we are seeking is basically around automotive parts and new energy related industries. This aligns with the current trend of Chinese companies going global and Morocco's national strategy to strengthen its automotive supply chain and expand the new energy sector," said Yan Bin, General Manager of the Morocco Office at China Road and Bridge Corporation, one constructor of the project.

The first 500 hectares of the project are currently under construction with over 80 percent of the land already allocated to around 20 multinational companies.

"Our settlement here has been warmly welcomed by the local government as we bring advanced technology, which fills a gap in Morocco's green industry initiative. Our entry has also attracted related upstream and downstream companies, which is a crucial step in building the industry's ecosystem," said Peter Yang, General Manager of BTR Mediterranean New Material Technology.

When it's finished, the 300-million-U.S. dollar project will directly create 100,000 local job opportunities and around 300,000 indirectly, those involved in the project say.

The new tech city is not only for Chinese and Moroccan companies, but also welcomes companies from other countries. As Morocco has bilateral free trade agreements with the European Union and the United States, the smart city could help boost global industrial and supply chain connectivity.

China-funded smart city to bring tech and jobs to Morocco

China-funded smart city to bring tech and jobs to Morocco

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APEC ministerial meetings show consensus spirit: chair

2024-11-14 15:00 Last Updated At:15:37

The upcoming APEC Economic Leaders' Meeting is likely to yield more consensuses based on the positive outcomes achieved at the previous 2024 APEC Ministerial Meetings, said Carlos Vasquez, 2024 Chair of APEC Senior Officials' Meetings.

The APEC Economic Leaders' Meeting will be held on Friday and Saturday in the Peruvian capital Lima. 

"What we have been able to demonstrate [is] that consensus is possible to be reached in APEC, because we have already adopted 10 ministerial statements by consensus and five additional deliverables, technical, political documents by consensus too. So these four last deliverables are extremely difficult, very complex, but I think that there is a sort of consensus spirit this year and I am optimistic regarding the possibility of having these additional four deliverables adopted by consensus by the end of this week," said the official.

APEC Ministerial Meetings play a crucial role in preparing and informing the APEC Leaders' Meeting. Several ministerial meetings for the APEC 2024, including meetings on finance, trade, tourism, have been held throughout the year.

The Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) began in 1989 as an informal dialogue group, and has since become the premier forum for facilitating economic growth, cooperation, trade and investment across the Asia-Pacific region. APEC currently has 21 members.

APEC ministerial meetings show consensus spirit: chair

APEC ministerial meetings show consensus spirit: chair

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