AU Summit: Morocco’s FM Reaffirms Morocco’s Commitment to Promote Peaceful Uses of Nuclear Energy for African Development

On Feb 18, 2023

Nasser Bourita, Minister of Foreign Affairs, African Cooperation and Moroccan Expatriates.

Addis Ababa – Morocco, under the High Vision of HM King Mohammed VI, is committed to promoting peace and development in Africa through South-South cooperation in the field of peaceful uses of nuclear energy, Minister of Foreign Affairs, African Cooperation and Moroccan Expatriates Nasser Bourita reaffirmed Saturday in Addis Ababa, on the sidelines of the 36th AU Summit.

During the ministerial meeting hosted by the African Nuclear Energy Commission (AFCONE) and the Executive Secretariat of the Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty Organization (CTBTO), Bourita expressed the Kingdom’s full support for the joint action plan of the CTBTO in a speech read on his behalf by Redouane Houssaini, Director of the United Nations and International Organizations at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, African Cooperation, and Moroccan Expatriates.

In this regard, Bourita congratulated the newly appointed AFCONE Executive Secretary Enobot AGBORAW (Cameroon) and gave him the assurance of Morocco’s full support for his efforts to reenergize the Commission’s governance in order to take into account the Continent’s actual needs for peaceful uses of nuclear energy within the framework of its partnership with CTBTO.

The Minister stated that Morocco is steadfastly committed to supporting this new partnership dynamic between AFCONE and CTBTO as a member of the AU ‘s Peace and Security Council.

The Kingdom positions itself as a dependable and credible partner of AFCONE and CTBTO in the training of French and English-speaking African experts in the field of civil and scientific applications of the International Monitoring System of the Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty (CTBT), particularly in the areas of tsunami warnings, nuclear and radiological an as part of its multifaceted action to achieve the goals of Agenda 2063.

On a more practical level, the Minister made three specific recommendations for action within the framework of this alliance, including the creation of regional excellence centers, the mobilization of sufficient and dependable resources for African States’ capacity building, and the expansion of training initiatives within a triangular cooperation between Morocco, the CTBTO, and AFCONE.

The Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Affairs Minister of Namibia, the Foreign Affairs Minister of Rwanda, the AU Commissioner for Political Affairs and Peace and Security, the Executive Secretaries of the CTBTO and AFCONE, and the AU Commissioner for Political Affairs and Peace and Security all participated in this ministerial meeting, the first of its kind between CTBTO and AFCONE.

The commitment and concrete steps taken by Morocco to ensure the adoption of the CTBT throughout Africa and the promotion of nuclear energy’s use in civil and scientific endeavors, as part of the initiative led by AFCONE, were warmly welcomed by all of the ministers present at the meeting.

The Comprehensive Nuclear Test Ban Treaty’s verification regime will be implemented by the CTBTO once it enters into force.

AFCONE is responsible for overseeing the Pelindaba Treaty, which created the African Nuclear Weapons Free Zone. Following its ratification in March 2022, Morocco became a State Party to this Treaty.

AU Summit Nasser Bourita Nuclear Energy