Morocco - Growing the Car Industry

According to the Wall Street Journal, Morocco has surpassed South Africa as an automotive hub on the African continent and is expected to produce more cars a year than Italy

The kingdom is also becoming a major supplier to European car factories, including Ford's high-tech plant in Valencia, Spain, which imports seating, interior accessories, wiring and home appliances.

The French manufacturer Renault, which has a market share of more than 40% in the region, has built two assembly plants in the last five years in Morocco, with a production of more than 200,000 cars a year. Similarly, Peugeot, which is banking on a major expansion project, is building a plant in Morocco, whose production is expected by the end of the year.

According to the Wall Street Journal, global carmakers see great growth potential in North Africa and are turning the region into a manufacturing hub. Volkswagen, Renault,Peugeot, Hyundai and Toyota have invested billions of dollars in Africa in recent years, attracted by growth prospects that other more mature automotive markets can no longer offer.

New car sales in the United States, China and Europe are currently declining after an exceptional decade, while the Middle East market and Africa, although still small, is expected to have 90 million vehicles by 2040, compared with 59 million currently.

The Wall Street Journal also notes that in a report released last May, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) congratulated policymakers in the North Africa and Middle East region for implementing economic and financial reforms.


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Fez to be twinned with Wuxi, China

The mayor of Wuxi, China, Mr Mao Xiaoping, met his Fez counterpart, M Hamid Chabat, in Fez this week and exchanged a letter of intent to twin the two cities.

Mr Xiaoping was accompanied by local government and business colleagues from the city of Wuxi to investigate areas of mutual exchange in industry, commerce, human resources, sport and the preservation of cultural heritage.

In the field of trade and industry, discussions were held on new sources of energy. A major push has been made by the Wuxi government recently to become a leader in new energy industries. In 2008 new energy industries were worth 37.8 Billion RMB, with the solar photovoltaic industry accounting for 30.2 Billion RMB of the total.

Wuxi is situated in the central region of the Yangtze River Delta, in Jiangsu province, 128km north of Shanghai. It's one of the top ten most competitive cities in China, and is the birthplace of Wu culture. Wuxi has a rich cultural heritage, and is particularly interested in the experience that Fez medina has as a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

Nanchan Pagoda, Wuxi