USA to give Morocco 110,000 tons of wheat and barley
Morocco-USA, Economics, 7/3/2000

The United States will provide Morocco an additional food aid, worth $ 6 million, of 110,000 metric tons of wheat and barley and a concessional financing for the purchase of 40,000 metric tons of wheat and 40,000 metric tons of barley, worth $10 million, says a statement of the US embassy in Rabat.

This new food aid brings to 210,000 metric tons the total U.S. food aid for Morocco this year, after last fall's package of 100,000 metric tons of wheat to Morocco, in a US administration gesture expressing its will to closely collaborate with Morocco and support ongoing reforms in the kingdom.

The aid package comprises 30,000 tons of wheat, valued at $ 6 million and 40,000 tons of barley, value at $ 10 million. The aid is meant to support Morocco's moves to alleviate drought effects and back reforms undertaken by the Moroccan king and government to promote rural areas. The statement further states The food aid "comes in recognition of the difficulty of the situation Morocco faces because of two consecutive years of worsening drought -- and of the determination of King Mohammed VI and his government led by Prime Minister Youssoufi to reform rural and agricultural development policies so that the Moroccan people and economy will be less vulnerable to drought in the future.

It was also announced that the U.S. government will work in partnership with the Moroccan government to identify ways in which this new food aid can support specific reforms in this area. Following the state visit to the USA of King Mohammed VI, US president Bill Clinton also pledged to increase the budget allocated to the United States Agency for International Development-Morocco to conserve water resources and promote economic reform.

The two countries further agreed to speed up the conclusion of other agreements, mainly a civil aviation "Open skies" agreement, cooperation in atmospheric research, oceanographic research, desert encroachment, and precipitation between the NASA and the Moroccan Royal space teledetection Center, the creation of an anti-drought observatory and cooperation in renewable energies and energy efficiency.

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