European Commission approves 135 million euros in grants to Morocco

The European Commission today approved a new financial support package of €135 million for Morocco. The package, in the form of grants, will support reform by the Moroccan Government in three areas: agricultural policy with the 'Plan Maroc Vert', the strategy for integrating populations living in remote areas and the literacy strategy.

The grants amounting to €135 million (around 1,375 million Moroccan dirham) are aimed at directly improving the lives of the Moroccan population. "Our aid programme reflects the special nature of the partnership between the European Union and Morocco in the context of Advanced Status relations. It also attests to the very great importance that we attribute to the reforms implemented by the Kingdom of Morocco to strengthen social cohesion and combat poverty", said Štefan Füle, the Commissioner in charge of Enlargement and the European Neighbourhood Policy. 

Sectoral support programme for agricultural policy (€70 million)

The priority for this programme is to provide support for the Plan Maroc Vert (the PMV) targeting small-scale or 'inclusive' farming. It will contribute towards strengthening the livestock and crop‑growing sectors (mainly the production of olive oil, dates, red meat and local specialities), with the emphasis on marketing and production quality and on increasing producer revenue and creating jobs. 

Sectoral support programme for the strategy for integrating populations living in remote areas (€55 million)

This programme will provide support to the National Rural Roads Programme designed to improve the access of isolated communities to the road network via all‑weather roads. 

Support programme for the implementation of the literacy strategy (€10 million)

Following on from the ongoing European Commission programme, this additional support is aimed at raising literacy rates, bolstering the intervention capacity of the institutions and NGOs involved in implementing the strategy, improving the quality of training, introducing schemes for certifying the skills acquired through training courses and organising opportunities for social and socio‑professional integration. The European Commission is the leading donor to Morocco with a National Indicative Programme (NIP) constituting €654 million for the 2007‑2010 period.