Spain and Morocco consolidate a more modern, global and cross-cutting relationship with the signing of fourteen cooperation agreements

The President of the Government of Spain, Pedro Sánchez, has met with the Head of Government of Morocco, Aziz Ajanouchy, to discuss the excellent state of bilateral relations. The two countries have adopted a Joint Declaration reaffirming their commitment to strengthening political dialogue.

Moncloa Palace, Madrid

Pool Moncloa / Borja Puig de la Bellacasa

The President of the Government of Spain, Pedro Sánchez, chaired the 13th High-Level Meeting (HLM) between Spain and Morocco, a meeting aimed at building a more modern, global, and cross-cutting relationship, with a shared vision of the future and current challenges-artificial intelligence, cybersecurity, climate change, and sustainable energy transition-with a focus on citizens.

Pedro Sánchez and the Head of Government of Morocco, Aziz Ajanouchy, held a bilateral meeting in which they agreed on the excellent state of relations between their two countries. The President of the Government of Spain stressed that the strong human ties that unite Spain and Morocco - the Moroccan community remains the largest foreign community in Spain and is already the largest contributor to Social Security, with 335,000 people - are an example of how cooperation translates into shared prosperity.

As a demonstration of this commitment, a Joint Declaration has been adopted reaffirming the will of both countries to strengthen political dialogue and cooperation in crucial areas such as the digitalisation and modernisation of public administrations, education, natural disaster prevention, sustainability, and equality, among others.

Pool Moncloa / Borja Puig de la Bellacasa

On the economic front, President Sánchez highlighted the strength of trade ties, noting that Spain has been Morocco's leading trading partner since 2012. He also referred to the Business Meeting held yesterday, emphasising the desire of Spanish and Moroccan companies to further deepen their relations. In this regard, he called for the opportunities presented by the organisation of the 2030 World Cup to be harnessed.

Agreements to deepen cooperation between the two countries

In addition to the Joint Declaration, 14 agreements were signed, including an international administrative agreement, eleven Memoranda of Understanding (MOUs), and two declarations of intent.

In the area of digitalisation and modernisation of Public Administrations, several Memoranda of Understanding (MOUs) have been signed: one on tax cooperation to strengthen the digitalisation of the tax administration; another for the electronic submission and receipt of cooperation requests; and an extension of the MOU on social protection and Social Security, which will continue to guide the exchange of technical capabilities, administrative modernisation, and the updating of cooperation mechanisms. An MOU on documentary heritage has also been signed, as well as a declaration of intent to cooperate on the exchange of information, technical knowledge, and experiences related to the digital production of legislative and regulatory texts and their electronic dissemination.

With the aim of strengthening cooperation in sport, culture and education, Spain and Morocco have signed a new administrative agreement that reinforces educational cooperation in Spanish-owned schools in Morocco. The text updates the framework for teacher participation, defines the selection and operational criteria, and establishes coordination and monitoring mechanisms. Furthermore, a Memorandum of Understanding has been signed to strengthen their sports cooperation, with joint actions in training, knowledge sharing, event organisation, and athlete protection. The agreement establishes an annual monitoring committee and consolidates both countries' commitment to safer, more inclusive, and future-oriented sport.

Pool Moncloa / Borja Puig de la Bellacasa

Also noteworthy is the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding to strengthen bilateral cooperation in preventing and responding to hate speech, through institutional cooperation, public awareness campaigns, and joint efforts to combat disinformation. This initiative responds to the proliferation of xenophobic messages on social media and the shared objective of promoting coexistence.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs, European Union and Cooperation has also signed Memoranda of Understanding on feminist diplomacy, to promote gender equality and the empowerment of women and girls in foreign policy, as well as on the exchange of young diplomats to develop training and cooperation programmes between Diplomatic Schools.

Finally, several MOUs have been signed to improve cooperation in natural disaster management, agriculture, and fisheries. The agreements signed by the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food-one for agriculture and one for fisheries-focus on innovation, water management, support for rural areas, and the fight against illegal fishing. Specifically, they promote marine fishing, aquaculture, and the fight against illegal fishing, as well as sustainable agriculture, food security, and rural development. An MOU has also been signed to promote technical and scientific cooperation in studying seismicity and the geodynamics of the Strait of Gibraltar, an area of common interest to both countries located in the collision zone of the Eurasian and African tectonic plates. This establishes a framework for collaboration aimed at improving shared knowledge about earthquakes and potential tsunamis, which includes the exchange of past and future scientific information and coordination in the deployment of observation networks.

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