Morocco is committed to working in partnership with the European Union in the context of environmental protection. A twinning agreement has therefore been signed between the two parties and aims, among other things, to bring Moroccan regulations on environmental protection into line with those of the EU.
The project that was initialled and signed between the Moroccan government and the EU delegation is entitled “Support for the implementation of the National Charter for the Environment and Sustainable Development in Morocco (CNEDD)”. Twinning will thus enable Morocco to lay the foundations for better pursuit of the sustainable development objectives it has set itself. A number of reforms will be implemented, including the adoption of the CNEDD, in accordance with the international treaties that this North African country has signed and ratified.
The twinning act was formalised during a working session that brought together the Minister for Energy, Mines and the Environment, Aziz Rebbah for the Moroccan side and the EU Ambassador to Morocco, Claudia Wiedey, as well as other international partners (including the Austrian Ambassador to Morocco, Klaus Kögeler, and the Head of Mission of the French Embassy in Morocco, Raphaël Martin de Lagarde).
A series of measures to be implemented in the coming days
Twinning with the European Union should produce its first fruits in the coming months. In Morocco, the principles of sustainable development will be integrated into sectoral strategies, particularly in the implementation of the environmental upgrading strategy (Mane) and the national human development initiative (INDH). In addition, the Cherifian Kingdom undertakes through this contract to draw up framework law 99-12 on the National Charter for the Environment and Sustainable Development.
All the actions will make it possible to strengthen the regulatory framework for the themes contained in the National Commission for the Environment and Sustainable Development and to ensure that Moroccan structures responsible for environmental protection in their mode of operation come closer to the regulations in force within the European Union. In addition, Morocco will have to work to develop good practices to include the environmental aspect in the country’s development policies.
On the ground, Morocco already welcomes some progress, particularly with regard to the adoption and implementation of the National Strategy for Sustainable Development (SNDD), the strengthening of the legal and regulatory framework, and the introduction of economic and financial instruments for environmental protection. These efforts have earned the country some international recognition. In 2018, the Climate Change Performance Index Report ranked Morocco as the second country in the world most committed to the fight against climate change.
Luchelle Feukeng
