Morocco and Tunisia to set up free trade area

Morocco and Tunisia have concluded in Rabat on Tuesday an agreement providing for setting up a free trade area.

The agreement, initialed by the two states' ministers of trade on the sidelines of the official visit Tunisia's president paid to Morocco March 15-16, provides for the suppression, with immediate effect, of all duties on some 2,000 non-agricultural products carrying a customs duty below 10%.

The other custom duties will be gradually lowered from now up to year 2007.

The accord stipulates the postponement of negotiations on the dismantling of customs barriers for agricultural and agribusiness products.

During the signing ceremony, both ministers underlined the importance of this agreement that will give a new momentum to bilateral relations as well as to regional complementarity.

Bilateral trade is in favor of Morocco with a total amount of $103 million in 1998 against $90 million in 1997.

Morocco and Tunisia are both bound to the European Union by separate association accords that provide, inter alia, for the creation of free exchange areas by year 2010 and Morocco has signed free-trade zone agreements with Jordan and Egypt.