Morocco and Tunisia to step up cooperation in social affairs

Moroccan Employment Minister Khalid Alioua conferred on Wednesday in Geneva with Tunisian Social Affairs Minister Chadly Neffati, on ways of boosting bilateral cooperation in matters of social affairs and related sectors.

The talks, held on the fringes of the ongoing 86th conference of the International Labor Organization, also covered the exchange of experience and coordination of social development strategies in Maghreban countries.

Both Morocco and Tunisia are members of the Arab Maghreb Union "UMA" which also includes Algeria, Mauritania and Libya. The union was set up in 1989 to enhance inter-Maghreban economic complementarity and compete with other regional groupings, MAP reported.

During his address at the ongoing ILO conference, the Moroccan minister called for developing an international declaration that protects the basic rights of the working class and takes into account the interests of developing countries.

He also invited international financial institutions to grant special interest to the social sector and recalled efforts made by Morocco to upgrade workers' rights and protect children against labor exploitation.