Morocco and Canada review means to upgrade cooperation

New perspectives of cooperation between Morocco and Canada were reviewed Monday in Montreal by Moroccan Minister of Social Development, Solidarity, Employment and Vocational Training Khalid Alioua and Canadian Minister of Human Resources Development Pierre Pettigrew.

The new outlook of bilateral cooperation seeks to develop traditional relations in training and management of human resources while increasing trade exchanges and stimulating private investments.

The meeting, attended by scores of heads of Canadian enterprises, surveyed results of the mission in Morocco undertaken last July by the Canadian official in order to identify fields where cooperation needs to be deepened.

The minister said talks covered environment issues, the Canadian company "Telesystems" which is interested in Morocco's second GSM license as well as exchanges between universities of schools.

He added that projects announced last year, totalling over two billion Canadian dollars, are being carried out.

The Moroccan minister, who is also spokesman of the government, voiced the same satisfaction at the progress of joint projects, such as a garbage dump in Casablanca's suburbs worth 400 Mln Canadian dollars, and a Canadian company's project to build a plant to produce pulp paper.

Alioua added that he will also raise with Canadian officials the opening of a finance line for training, development of human resources and technical assistance. This finance line is part of the Canadian program for institutional consolidation in Morocco, for which Canada earmarks 15 million dollars over 5 years from 1996 to 2001.