Morocco: Parliament Ratifies Amendment to the FTA with Turkey

According to the Anadolu Agency, the Moroccan parliament issued a statement on Tuesday stating ratification of the amendment to the free trade agreement with Turkey.

The statement said, “The House of Representatives ratified, yesterday, Monday, a number of international agreements, including the amendment to the free trade agreement with Turkey.”

Morocco and Turkey agreed to amend the agreement on August 24th, and the Moroccan government ratified the amendment in October.

According to the same statement, the amendment allows Morocco to impose customs duties on a number of Turkish industrial products for a period of 5 years, provided that the Moroccan-Turkish joint committee reconvenes three months before the end of the five-year period, to assess whether there is a need for an extension.

The amendment law will be referred to the House of Councilors for a vote, before it is published in the Official Gazette and entered into force.

It should be noted that the value of Moroccan imports from Turkey reached 2.3 billion USD in 2019; and therefore witnessing an increase of 16 % compared to 2018.

On the other hand, the value of Morocco’s exports to Turkey during 2019 amounted to about 700 million USD.

Turkish businessmen’s investments in Morocco worth one billion dollars, and provide job opportunities for nearly 8,000 Moroccans, according to data collected by the Anadolu Agency.