Sahara issue: only political dialogue can promote peace, security in Africa, says Benin president
Morocco-Benin, Politics, 6/16/2004

President of Benin said in an interview with MAP the stance of his country on the Sahara issue is crystal clear, noting that his country supports political dialogue which alone can lead to peace and security in Africa and in the whole world.

The statement of Benin's president came on the eve of the visit of king Mohammed VI of Morocco to the African country, the first leg of a five-nation African tour.

Mathieu Kerekou explained that his country supports the United Nations' efforts to reach a final settlement of the issue.

He also raised in the interview Morocco-Benin relations, underlining that both the two countries endeavour for the "establishment of a genuine South-South cooperation."

He labelled relations at the bilateral level as "positive" since the signing in March 1991 of the agreement on economic, scientific, technical and cultural cooperation and the creation of a joint cooperation commission.

Since the signing of this accord, he said, Morocco has financed several projects in Benin, notably the construction of a University residence, granting subsidies for fisheries research and partially funding the building of the Supreme Court in Porto Novo.

Cooperation between the two sides was also concretised in the legislative realm and the training of civil, military and customs officials, he said.

This cooperation was illustrated, noted Kerekou, by the co-chairmanship of the extraordinary Ministerial Conference of the Least Developed Countries (LDCs) and Group 77, held in the Moroccan capital in June 2003.

According to the president, this conference reached concrete results, notably "the annulment of debts of LDCs and increasing the access of our products to the Moroccan market."

Morocco had decided to write off the debts of the least advanced African countries and lift all customs barriers on products imported from these countries.

Kerekou said he was impressed, during his visit to Morocco in 1991, by the "political will" in the kingdom to work for the consolidation of friendship relations and cooperation between the two African countries.

Previous Stories:
  Several cooperation projects in the pipeline between Morocco and Benin   (6/15/2004)
  President of Benin praises Morocco and urges for its return to African union   (3/25/2003)

Please add a link on your webiste pointing to ArabicNews.com and bookmark ArabicNews.com & subscribe to our daily email news bulletin.

Search