China, Morocco and Africa: Ties for a shared Development
By Invitation
Policy Center for the New South
At a time when the African economy is entering a new stage of development and transformation, there is an important potential for strengthening economic cooperation between China and Africa. The Belt and Road Initiative, adopted by the Chinese government, comes to deepen the already existing ties, and places Morocco as a key actor in China’s expansion to new African markets. In this regard, the two countries signed a memorandum of understanding in 2017, aiming to promote the Belt and Road Initiative.
Discussing the China-Morocco economic cooperation is only relevant when analyzing four priority areas for China and Africa, with Morocco as a particular focus: Infrastructure, Industry, Trade and Development Strategies. China’s presence in Africa can be first analyzed through its investments in infrastructure, since it plays a huge role in financing the pressing needs of African countries in performant and sustainable (green) railways, highways, bridges and ports. Also, as industrialization in the continent is moving forward, some African countries have been successful so far at attracting Chinese manufacturing ventures, thus it is relevant to assess China’s involvement in developing an African industry and integrating it into the Global Value Chains. Trade remains finally a key indicator in evaluating the overall economic cooperation between China and Morocco, and a relevant topic allowing to identify the challenges and the necessary adjustments. This analysis leads naturally to a discussion on the different development strategies adopted by China on one hand, and Morocco and the rest of Africa on the other.
For more information, please contact:
Mohamed Abrouq, Junior Program Officer at m.abrouq@policycenter.ma
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SEPTEMBER 19, 2019 |
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09:00 – 09:30 |
Registration & welcome coffee |
| 09:30 - 09:45 |
Opening Remarks Karim El Aynaoui, President, Policy Center for the New South H.E Li Li, Ambassador, Embassy of the People's Republic of China to Morocco |
| 09:45 - 10:15 |
Introductory Remarks El Rezrazi Mostafa, Senior Fellow, Policy Center for the New South |
| 10:15 - 11:15 |
Panel 1: Chinese Infrastructure & Capital Projects in Africa Chair: John Yearwood, President, Yearwood Media Group Speakers: Dr. Zhou Jinyan, Assistant Professor, Chinese Academy of Social Sciences Ihssane Guennoun, International Relations Specialist, Policy Center for the New South Mehdi Laraki, President, GELACOM Group |
| 11:15 - 11:30 | Coffee Break |
| 11:30 - 12:45 |
Panel 2: Industrialization and Global Value Chains; towards a structural transformation in Africa Chair: Adel Hamaiza, Research Fellow, Chatham House, UK Speakers: Larabi Jaidi, Senior Fellow, Policy Center for the New South Nabila Berrada, Senior Advisor, Moroccan Investment and Export Development Agency Mehdi Laraki, President, Asia Commision, Confédération Générale des Entreprises du Maroc (CGEM)
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| 14:00 - 15:15 |
Panel 3: China-Africa Security Cooperation Chair: Abdelhak Bassou, Senior Fellow, Policy Center for the New South Speakers: Chris Alden, Professor in International Relations, London School of Economics (LSE) Kidane Kiros, Executive Director, IPSS Hu Yang, Assistant Professor, Institute of African Geography and Resource Environment, Yunnan Normal Universitry Liu Litao, Associate Professor, School of International Studies, School of History, Nanjing University |
| 15:15 - 15:30 | Coffee Break |
| 15:30 - 16:45 |
Panel 4: Converged Pathways for a shared Development Chair: Bouchra Rahmouni, Director of Research, Partnerships and Events, Policy Center for the New South Speakers: Fathallah Oualalou, Senior Fellow, Policy Center for the New South Wang Heng, Vice Director and Professor of the Institute of African Studies Guo Wei, Associate Professor, Departement of Social Work and Social Policy, School of Social and Behavioural Sciences, Nanjing University |
| 16:45 - 17:00 |
Closing Remarks Karim El Aynaoui, President, Policy Center for the New South H.E. Li Li, Ambassador, Embassy of China to Morocco |