OECS AND MOROCCO CONTINUE TO STRENGTHEN COOPERATION

International Relations Unit of the OECS Commission

Wednesday, December 19, 2018 — The OECS and Morocco are continuing to deepen the bonds of friendship and cooperation between their countries and peoples. The two sides are pursuing this effort through a number of platforms, one of which is a series of capacity building programmes offered by Morocco and targeting the region’s key economic and social sectors.

The International Relations Unit of the OECS Commission has been working closely with the Embassy of Morocco in Saint Lucia to facilitate development and delivery of the programmes.

On the heels of a two-week capacity building programme for regional diplomats in November, Morocco has again played host to regional officials from key sectors, namely Tourism and Agriculture.

The programmes were conducted during the periods November 26-December 04, 2018 (Tourism) and December 10-15, 2018 (Agriculture).

Tourism Capacity Building

The capacity building programme in Tourism focused on exposing participants to the Moroccan tourism experience, in particular, the country’s National Tourism Development Strategy.

The programme also addressed matters relating to tourism training, promotion, marketing and communication; tourism investment; sustainability in tourism; tourism innovation and competitiveness; and legislation for the grading of accommodation institutions among others.

Agriculture Capacity Building

The capacity building programme in Agriculture focused on exposing participants to the Green Morocco Plan, a highly successful agricultural development strategy being implemented by the country since 2008.

The programme also focused on matters relating to agricultural research and training, and agricultural marketing and institutional development, and involved as well, familiarization visits to key agricultural institutions and projects.

Participants were of the view that both programmes succeeded in meeting their objectives of contributing to institutional capacity in OECS Member States. They were also of the view that the bonds of friendship and cooperation between the OECS and Morocco were significantly deepened as a result.

The International Relations Unit of the Commission is continuing to engage the Embassy of Morocco in the development of capacity building and other programmes of cooperation in key sectors.