King’s reforms had positive impact on Morocco-US FTA, prime minister
From ArabicNews.Com
King’s reforms had positive impact on Morocco-US FTA, prime minister
Morocco-USA, Politics,
6 March 2004
Initiatives and reforms conducted by Moroccan king Mohammed VI in
various fields have had "a positive and decisive impact" on the
conclusion of a free trade agreement with the United States, said, here
Thursday, Moroccan Premier Driss Jettou.
The Prime Minister described this agreement as "exemplary" as it
preserves Morocco’s interests and its privileged relations with its
natural and traditional partners such as the European Union and the Arab
world.
This agreement, he went on, opens new horizons for Moroccan industrial
and agricultural exports towards the US.
Echoing Morocco’s chief negotiator and also minister-delegate of foreign
affairs and cooperation, Taieb Fassi Fihri, the Premier gave assurances
regarding some aspects of the agreement, concluded on Tuesday, mainly
concerning generic drugs, agriculture and intellectual property,
insisting that Morocco’s rights and interests are preserved.
He praised the role played by the Moroccan private sector during the
seven rounds of negotiations that lasted 13 months.
On Thursday, Taib Fassi Fihri, denied that Morocco has made any
concessions during its negotiations for a free trade agreement with the
USA concluded on Tuesday.
He insisted that the negotiators have been defending the interests of
the pharmaceutics industry and particularly the generic drugs industry
that accounts for 20% of national production of medicine.
Fassi Fihri explained that Moroccan and US negotiators agreed to
maintain all the sector’s present gains and preserve its future
development, stressing that under the agreement with the USA, the
protection duration of a patent will not exceed 20 years before it can
be copied, used and sold by Moroccan generic medicine producers.
Meanwhile, went on the official, Morocco can still enjoy the needed
flexibility to protect public health and guarantee to all access to
medicine, in keeping with the Doha declaration on this particular issue.
This applies to AIDS, tuberculosis, or any other epidemics as well as
in case extreme emergency or threats to national security, he added.
His colleague, health minister, Mohammed Cheikh Biadillah, also gave
assurances and even described as "unfounded" concerns over medicine
costs related to the Free Trade Agreement since, he said, the duration
of licenses protection of medicine -20 years- will not be extended.
Biadillah also stressed that gains in the field of generic medicine will
be preserved.
In case of epidemic, he explained, the Moroccan government has all the
guarantees to ensure the protection of public health, and the government
would be able to resort to all legal means to protect citizens’ health,
as the Doha agreements stipulate that "Health overrules all accords."
Meanwhile, the conclusion of the FTA with the US has made the headlines
of Friday’s newspapers in Morocco which emphasized the importance of
such an agreement for the Moroccan economy, especially as it "preserves
the country’s national interests."
The agreement was negotiated in "the strict respect and defense of the
Kingdom’s interests while taking into account the difference of
development" between the United States and Morocco, wrote the semi-official
French-speaking daily "Le Matin du Sahara et du Maghreb," quoting
extracts from Thursday’s news conference of Fassi Fishri.
The Socialists’(in Government) newspaper "Liberation" insisted on the
benefits that Morocco will draw from such an agreement.
This agreement is "balanced," says the daily quoting "observers and
analysts."
Al Alam, daily of the Istiqlal party (also in Government) called on both
the Government and the private sector to "step up considerable efforts
to upgrade the sectors of textile, food industry and fisheries to
improve their competitiveness on the American market," while "L’Economiste"
(independent) quoted Moroccan economic operators as saying they are "satisfied"
with the agreement "despite some loopholes."
