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[ad_1] Morocco’s ambitious free trade strategy has expanded market access and boosted key export sectors, but widening trade deficits with major partners raise questions about the agreements’ overall economic impact, according to new analysis. The kingdom’s imports under free trade agreements reached 207.8 billion dirhams ($20.4 billion) in 2022, climbing 20.9% from the previous year, with the European Union accounting for 66.6% of the total. Imports from the United States surged 60.8% to 31.5 billion dirhams, while Turkish imports rose 20.5%. “We cannot deny these agreements’ positive impact on the national economy, but their effect on competitiveness remains uneven across…

[ad_1] Rabat – Fire crews have contained the blaze that broke out Tuesday in Derdara Forest in the province of Chefchaouen.  Provincial director of the National Agency for Water and Forests (ANEF), Youssef Zarroqi, announced the news on Thursday.  He explained that operations will continue in the coming days to fully put out the fire, which has threatened the area’s dense woodland and natural resources.  From the first report of the fire, provincial and local authorities, the Royal Armed Forces (FAR), the Royal Gendarmerie, Civil Protection, Water and Forests staff, and Auxiliary Forces moved in to control the flames.  Zarroqi…

[ad_1] Rabat — In less than a decade, Kazakhstan has transformed itself from a resource-driven economy into one of Central Asia’s most ambitious digital innovators. What began in 2017 with the launch of the Digital Kazakhstan strategy has grown into a sweeping national project reshaping government, finance, education, and entrepreneurship. Since then, the country has been positioning itself as a potential leader in the global AI race. Kazakhstan’s digital strategy is set out to bring services online, close the digital divide, and use technology to boost growth. Today, officials can claim real progress: more than 92% of public services are…

[ad_1] Marrakech – A recent controversy in Meknes has brought attention to questions surrounding Amazigh identity in Morocco. The case involves a family who wanted to name their newborn son “Massinissa,” after the historical Amazigh king, but faced opposition from civil registry officials. Human rights lawyer Sabri Lhou, who represented the family, explains that the issue began when the child’s father tried to register the name at the eighth district office in the Marjane 2 neighborhood of Meknes. Despite Moroccan laws and ministerial circulars that give parents the right to choose their children’s names, the civil registrar refused to record…

[ad_1] South Sudan’s government has firmly denied reports of discussions with Israel regarding the possible relocation of Palestinians from Gaza to its territory, following widespread media coverage and public outcry. The denial follows an Associated Press report that cited unnamed sources claiming that Israel and South Sudan were engaged in talks over forcibly transferring Palestinians as part of Israel’s broader strategy in Gaza. South Sudan’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs responded Wednesday (13 August), calling the reports “baseless” and “not (reflecting) the official position or policy.” The proposal, reportedly part of a larger Israeli plan to facilitate what Prime Minister Benjamin…

[ad_1] Marrakech – Scientists have discovered three dinosaur teeth in Morocco’s Middle Atlas Mountains that represent the oldest evidence of turiasaurian sauropods in mainland Africa. The teeth, collected from the Middle Jurassic El Mers III Formation near Boulemane, date back approximately 168 million years. The findings were recently published in the scientific journal Acta Palaeontologica Polonica by an international team led by D. Cary Woodruff of the Phillip and Patricia Frost Museum of Science in Miami and including researchers from Morocco’s Université Sidi Mohamed Ben Abdellah in Fez. According to the study, these large, “spatulate” teeth with diagnostic “heart”-shaped crowns…

[ad_1] The Polisario mercenaries have been nurtured deceit, treachery and lies for fifty years by the feckless, corrupt and betrayer Algerian military regime. Both the puppet and the puppeteers continue to live in denial. Though they reached the endgame, they still refuse to concede defeat and accept the failure of their separatist project in the Moroccan Sahara. They know that their days are numbered as the UN is expected to blow this year the final whistle of the Sahara conflict endorsing the Autonomy plan offered by Morocco for the territory under its sovereignty as the ONLY realistic solution. The Polisario…

[ad_1] Marrakech – A recent Campus France report places Morocco among the top countries in international student mobility, both as a country of origin and destination for foreign students. The North African country now serves as a regional hub for hosting international students in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region. According to data from the UNESCO Institute for Statistics (UIS), cited in the latest Campus France report on “Global Student Mobility,” Morocco hosted 22,000 foreign students in 2022, positioning it as one of the main host countries in the region, after Saudi Arabia (64,000 students), Jordan (39,000), Egypt…

[ad_1] Against the backdrop of worsening ties between Paris and Algiers, French judicial authorities have issued an international arrest warrant for a former Algerian embassy official accused of orchestrating a covert kidnapping operation on French soil. The suspect, identified as a former intelligence officer operating under diplomatic cover, is wanted for “arrest, abduction and unlawful detention in connection with a terrorist enterprise” and “criminal terrorist conspiracy,” according to official sources cited by AFP. The warrant, issued in late July, targets a man described in an April report by France’s domestic intelligence agency (DGSI) as a “non-commissioned officer” of Algeria’s powerful…

[ad_1] Marrakech – Cisco and the International University of Rabat (UIR) have signed a Memorandum of Understanding to create a Cisco EDGE Incubation Center at the university. The partnership will focus on cybersecurity and artificial intelligence, aiming to position UIR as a strategic hub for development and innovation. The agreement forms part of Cisco’s global Country Digital Acceleration program, which promotes digital transformation by connecting academia, startups, industry players, and public institutions to accelerate the adoption of new technologies. The EDGE Centre (Experience, Design, Go-to-market, Earn) will serve as a catalyst for innovation in Morocco’s growing technology ecosystem. Through this…