Undersecretary of State for Foreign Affairs, Vincenzo Amendola, went on a two-day visit to Morocco to relaunch bilateral relations and to lay the grounds for a strategic partnership founded on a number of political, economic and cultural initiatives.
When meeting with Prime Minister, Abdelilah Benkirane, with the Minister-Delegate for Foreign Affairs and Cooperation, Mbarka Bouaida, and with the Minister-Delegate for the Interior, Charki Draiss, Mr Amendola expressed the Italian Government’s wish to boost bilateral investment and trade, also highlighting the role of the Moroccan community in Italy.
Undersecretary Amendola emphasised that areas like the energy sector and the development of SMEs, in which Italy is promoting sizable investments, represent a tangible launching pad for development, also in view of a perspective commitment in the African continent. Together with his interlocutors, Mr Amendola took stock of the major regional crises, starting with the stabilisation of Libya, in order to explore Italy’s and Morocco’s commitment to find a solution thereto. On the second day of his visit, Mr Amendola visited the “Mohammed VI” imam training institute, which was promoted by the King of Morocco to educate imams to the authentic values of moderate Islam.
With the Moroccan officials Mr Amendola discussed forms of cooperation in preventing radicalisation, by leveraging the authoritative Rabat institute’s heritage of experience and skills. In Casablanca, the Undersecretary visited the Italian Consulate General and the major Italian institutions in a city that vaunts important economic and cultural exchanges with Italy.