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Marrakech – The President of the Canary Islands, Fernando Clavijo, will travel to Agadir in January 2026 to strengthen cooperation with Morocco’s Souss-Massa region. This upcoming visit follows a recent institutional trip by Canary Islands officials to the Moroccan city.
According to the official website of the Canary Islands Government, Octavio Caraballo, Vice-Minister of the Presidency, and Luis Padilla, Director General of Relations with Africa, visited Souss-Massa this week. During their stay, they met with the President of the Regional Council, Karim Achengli, and his team to prepare for Clavijo’s upcoming visit.
The two governments have agreed to establish a bilateral commission between the Canary Islands and Agadir. This commission will include representatives from both territories and experts in strategic sectors such as the blue economy, water management, connectivity, tourism, culture, and sports.
Experts from the Canary Islands’ public universities will play a prominent role in this commission, which will define concrete proposals and establish a stable framework for collaboration.
Among the cooperation proposals is a joint tourism training program that will combine the capabilities of both regions. Inspired by successful experiences like the “Tierra Firme” project, the program will focus on diversifying tourism toward nature, ecology, and culture, as well as training young Moroccan professionals.
Culture and sports were also highlighted as priority areas for cooperation. The officials discussed strengthening existing cultural ties, particularly in crafts and artistic production, and establishing alliances between sports teams from both territories, with special attention to football.
The 2025 African Cup of Nations (AFCON), with matches in Agadir, and the 2030 World Cup, with Gran Canaria as one of the venues, provide an ideal framework to showcase these sports partnerships.
Additionally, representatives from Souss-Massa announced that an institutional delegation from the region will travel to Fuerteventura to confirm their participation in Africagua, an international forum on water and renewable energy. This represents a first step in collaboration on these matters between the two territories.
Caraballo indicated that “the creation of this bilateral commission will allow for orderly progress with concrete results in areas of interest to both regions, in preparation for President Clavijo’s visit in January.”
Padilla noted that “the excellent reception in Agadir confirms the opportunity to consolidate a stable relationship, with projects that provide benefits for both parties in key fields such as tourism, innovation, connectivity, desalination, or the blue economy.”
Building on previous engagements
This upcoming visit adds to Clavijo’s previous engagements with Morocco. In October 2024, the Canary Islands President visited Rabat, where he met with Moroccan Foreign Minister Nasser Bourita. During this meeting, Clavijo reaffirmed his government’s alignment with Spain’s 2022 policy supporting Morocco’s Autonomy Plan for Western Sahara.
During that visit, which coincided with the islands facing a migration crisis, Bourita addressed the issue of unaccompanied Moroccan minors in European countries, stating that Morocco is ready to receive them “as of tomorrow.”
However, he criticized complications in repatriation stemming from “gaps in laws and procedures” in those countries. “Morocco is ready to take back all irregular immigrants who prove it, but is the other side ready to do so?” Bourita asked at the time, suggesting that the situation would change if solutions to these legal and administrative gaps were found.
The Moroccan Foreign Minister also cautioned against overemphasizing migration issues, noting that migration from African countries accounts for just 0.23% of global migration. “Eight out of 10 African migrants stay in African countries, only 2% go abroad,” Bourita said, warning against rhetoric suggesting that “Africa is going to invade Europe.”
Regarding unaccompanied minors arriving in the Canary Islands, Clavijo said he discussed with Bourita “the possibility of working together with Morocco to improve” their management.
“The minister has outlined paths that have shed light; we will have to talk to the Government of Spain, there are important and very hopeful avenues with a clear message to the mafias that this is not the way,” Clavijo stated at the time.
Following his October visit to Rabat, Clavijo led another delegation to Morocco later that month, focused on scientific and technological cooperation. The visit included over 30 Canarian scientists, experts, entrepreneurs, and representatives of knowledge centers who participated in work sessions at the Mohammed VI Polytechnic University (UM6P).
According to Alfonso Cabello, spokesperson for the Canary Islands Government, the visit aimed to “continue adding different cooperation initiatives of the Government of the Canary Islands in the countries of West Africa.”
The January 2026 visit to Agadir represents a continuation of these efforts to strengthen ties between the Canary Islands and Morocco in various strategic sectors.
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