Morocco and Italy are seeking to expand trade and investment opportunities through a new agreement aimed at connecting businesses and supporting companies entering new markets. The Organization for Trade and Industry of Morocco in Italy (OCIMI) and CNA Toscana Centro, an Italian business association, signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) to promote trade, facilitate bilateral investments, and establish strategic partnerships.
The agreement was signed in Prato on Friday, aiming to support small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in the Italian provinces of Prato and Pistoia as they expand into the Moroccan market. Emiliano Melani, president of CNA Toscana Centro, and Marouan El Mansoub, president of OCIMI, signed the memorandum. Simone Calzolai, a lawyer specializing in international strategic partnerships, also attended the signing.
The agreement establishes a framework for cooperation through business and institutional missions, participation in trade fairs, and business-to-business (B2B) and business-to-government (B2G) meetings to connect companies with potential commercial and industrial partners. It also aims to support joint ventures and long-term partnerships between Italian and Moroccan businesses.
Through its network and expertise, OCIMI will provide CNA Toscana Centro member companies with business profiling services, assistance in identifying customers, suppliers, and partners, and support for entering the Moroccan market. Emiliano Melani described the agreement as an important step toward expanding international opportunities for businesses in the region.
The agreement also reflects Morocco’s growing importance as a logistics, commercial, and production hub connecting Europe and Africa. Marouan El Mansoub welcomed the partnership, describing it as an opportunity to strengthen cooperation between the two countries’ business communities. He noted that Italy and Morocco could build on their longstanding economic and human ties to establish more structured cooperation.
The memorandum also provides for dedicated business missions, structured support programs for companies seeking to enter Morocco, and direct connections with local institutional and economic stakeholders. The two organizations will also seek to encourage joint participation in international trade fairs and promotional activities to strengthen commercial relations between the two countries.
The agreement could help Italian companies, particularly SMEs, overcome barriers related to market information, partner identification, and access to investment opportunities in Morocco. The lawyer Calzolai noted that Morocco, with a logistics hub like Tangier Med, is now a strategic platform for European companies, and that legal and corporate expertise can help establish partnerships between Italian and Moroccan operators.
Key points
- The agreement aims to promote trade and investment between Morocco and Italy, with a focus on supporting small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs).
- The memorandum establishes a framework for cooperation through business and institutional missions, participation in trade fairs, and business-to-business (B2B) and business-to-government (B2G) meetings.
- Morocco’s growing importance as a logistics, commercial, and production hub connecting Europe and Africa is a key factor in the agreement.
