Morocco, USA probe services chapter of free trade agreement negotiations

Delegations representing Morocco and the United States probed in Geneva the services chapter of the free trade agreement negotiations, kicked off by the two countries earlier this year in Washington.

During the meeting, held in the fringes of the World Trade Organization's negotiations, the Moroccan and US delegations exchanged information on legislation and institutions with regard to the services chapter.

The head of the Moroccan delegation, Khalid Sayah, Director of international trade relations at the commerce department, told MAP that the meeting was the second Moroccan-US encounter regarding this chapter.

The Moroccan official emphasized the crucial importance of the current stage in the FTA negotiations for the Moroccan party "given the complexity of the American legislation."

On the agenda were also issues related to individuals movement, "an issue that is of great importance to Morocco," he said, stressing that the Kingdom is hoping for "an easier and greater accessibility to the US market for qualified personnel, technicians and professionals be them craftsmen, doctors, lawyers, engineers, or accountants."

The meeting's rationale was to collect as many data as possible on US legislations and regulations, said Sayah who is supervising the services chapter of Morocco-US FTA negotiations, adding that Morocco is seeking to identify market niches that may open up opportunities to the Moroccan services sector.

The US delegation has shown keen interest in Morocco's tourism sector and to the kingdom's objective to attract up to 10 million tourists a year by 2010, based on an integrated, liberal and long term vision.