King of Morocco Mohammed VI said on Sunday that the Nigeria-Morocco gas pipeline project (NMGP), intended for the present and future generations, works "for peace, for African economic integration and for co-development".
"Given the continental dimension of the NMGP, I consider it to be a major flagship project which will link Africa to Europe," stressed the King in his speech to the Nation on the occasion of the 47th anniversary of the Green March.
"Considering the special importance I attach to the partnership with West African countries, I consider the Nigeria-Morocco Gas Pipeline Project to be more than just a bilateral project between two sister nations,” stressed the King, adding that “in fact, I want this to be a strategic project that benefits all of West Africa – a region which is home to more than 440 million people."
The King noted in this regard that in addition to Morocco and Mauritania, this pipeline offers the fifteen ECOWAS countries opportunities and guarantees in terms of energy security and economic, industrial and social development.
In this context, the Sovereign recalled that the memorandum of understanding signed recently in Rabat with the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) and in Nouakchott with Mauritania and Senegal, is a key building block in the completion of this project.
That signing reflects, added the king, the commitment of the countries concerned to contribute to the completion of this strategic project, and attests to their desire to see it through.
The King commended, in this context, the support of regional and international financial institutions which have expressed their wish to participate in its implementation, affirming the concern of Morocco to "continue to work closely, responsibly and with the utmost degree of transparency with our brothers and sisters in Nigeria, as well as with all partners, in order to implement the NMGP as soon as possible."
In this regard, the King reiterated the receptivity of Morocco to all form of constructive partnership for the implementation this major African project.
This approach, noted the king, is in line with the special relations Morocco enjoys with other African countries, "and which I am keen to strengthen in order to serve our peoples' shared interests."
Recalling having taken the initiative, with Muhammadu Bouhari, President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, to launch the Nigeria-Morocco Gas Pipeline project, the King welcomed the current state of progress of this major project, in line with the terms of the contract signed in December 2016.
