EU to help Morocco take up challenges in textile sector

Visiting EU Commissioner for Trade, Peter Mandelson said, here Friday, the EU will help Morocco take up the challenges in the textile industry through a strategy of financial cooperation.

Mandelson recalled that 167 million Euro were allocated to Morocco in 2004 as part of the MEDA program (the financial tool of the EU's aid to countries in the south of the Mediterranean). He said the north African country will also benefit of 275 million Euro part of the National Indicative Program 2005-2006.

The EU commission is very attentive to the preoccupations of Moroccan officials and economic operators after the expiration of the Multifiber Agreement, he said, noting that such concerns are completely justified given the key role the textile industry plays in the Moroccan economy.

Textile products represent nearly 33 percent of Moroccan exports and the sector employs 200,000 people.

The Multifiber Agreement, that expired on January 1, limited competition from cheap Asian exports to the European Union and the United States.

After the elimination of the quota system, Morocco's exports of textile fell by 33 percent in January 2005.

Mandelson said at the end of a meeting with Moroccan Prime Minister, Driss Jettou, that the EU Commission has set up surveillance implements to moderate the huge flow of Chinese exports of textile products and to limit the damages.

He added that "he EU has given Morocco a lot of assistance in the textile industry to help it adjust and prepare for the removal of the quota system for textiles at the beginning of this year."

The Commissioner's meeting with Jettou touched on means to protect and guarantee Moroccan products access to European markets, and to accompany the country as it progresses economically.

Mandelson, who ended Friday his visit to Morocco, said the European Commission "encourages the country to move forward and rise the rhythm of productivity to meet the challenge of competition."

During his visit, Mandelson held talks with several Moroccan officials that mainly focused on the textile industry.