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In line with strengthening the engagement of Moroccans living abroad in defending the Kingdom\u2019s supreme interests\u2014foremost of which is the Moroccan Sahara issue\u2014the Consulate General of the Kingdom of Morocco in Pontoise, France, organized a scientific and networking symposium yesterday, Saturday, June 13. The event was held under the theme: “Mobilizing Moroccan Competences Abroad in Light of the Sublime Royal Directives: Toward a Citizenship Diplomacy Supporting Territorial Integrity.”<\/p>\n
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The meeting witnessed a distinguished turnout that brought together academics, experts, and political elected officials from various French municipalities within the consular hub’s jurisdiction. Notable attendees included representatives from the municipalities of Beauvais, Garges-les-Gonesse, Creil, \u00c9piais-Rhus, and B\u00e9themont-la-For\u00eat, alongside a multitude of heads of civil and religious associations, executives, and Moroccan students residing in France.<\/p>\n
In her opening remarks, Ms. Wafaa Zahi, Consul General of the Kingdom of Morocco in Pontoise, welcomed the extensive audience. She emphasized that this symposium serves as an embodiment of the Sublime Royal Directives calling for the mobilization of Moroccan competences abroad as essential partners in defending the Kingdom’s supreme interests. Zahi pointed out that the positive developments surrounding the territorial integrity issue\u2014particularly following France’s constructive stance supporting the Autonomy Initiative and the UN Resolution 2797\u2014necessitate a transition toward an influential and proactive “citizenship diplomacy.” This approach capitalizes on the demographic and qualitative weight of the Moroccan diaspora in France, which numbers nearly two million people according to statistics from the National Institute of Statistics and Economic Studies (INSEE).<\/p>\n
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This identity-driven dimension was vividly reflected throughout the venue, where ancient Moroccan culture was strongly present through authentic heritage touches and decors that adorned the consulate headquarters, casting a pure Moroccan atmosphere that earned the admiration of the attendees.<\/p>\n
The symposium featured rigorous scientific and legal presentations. Dr. El Houssine Bekkar Es-sebai, a lawyer authorized before the Court of Cassation and President of the Southern Observatory for Human Rights of Foreigners and Migration, delivered a detailed presentation on the dynamics surrounding the Moroccan Sahara file since the glorious Green March. The former visiting professor at Ibn Zohr University, specialized in media, migration, and human rights issues, reviewed a series of significant political, legal, and diplomatic developments achieved by Moroccan diplomacy. These breakthroughs have decisively contributed to consolidating the Moroccan identity of the Sahara on the international stage and garnering further global recognition for the legitimacy of the Autonomy Initiative.<\/p>\n
Within the framework of strengthening decentralized cooperation mechanisms, the symposium provided a timely opportunity to examine the importance of twinning and cooperation agreements between Moroccan and French municipalities. This segment was presented by Ms. Leila Dekdak, Municipal Councilor in charge of the Twinning and International Relations Committee in the city of Beauvais, who highlighted these initiatives as a fundamental lever for parallel diplomacy. The discussion culminated in proposing practical projects for new twinnings aimed at boosting cultural and economic exchange and deepening partnerships between local authorities in both countries.<\/p>\n
On the economic front, the investment environment was a focal point of discussion. Mr. Brahim El Ammari, an expert in accounting and financial management, delivered a presentation centered on the promising investment opportunities currently available in Morocco, highlighting the new Investment Charter and the incentives and advantages it grants to Moroccans living abroad to encourage their contribution to national economic development.<\/p>\n
For her part, Ms. Malika Lahnite, a lawyer at the Paris Bar, intervened to shed light on key legislative and legal aspects governing the lives of Moroccan residents on French soil. Her presentation clarified the rights and duties of diaspora members, stressing that awareness of local laws serves as a safety valve to protect the individual and collective interests of Moroccans in France while enhancing their positive integration.<\/p>\n
The well-attended symposium concluded with the participants issuing a series of practical recommendations aimed at institutionalizing and organizing the efforts of Moroccans around the world. The key highlights emphasized the necessity of moving away from randomness and improvisation in dealing with vital national causes, relying instead on scientific methodologies and well-studied strategies capable of anticipating challenges.<\/p>\n
Furthermore, they stressed maximizing the use of the historical, cumulative expertise held by the first generation of Moroccan immigrants, deploying it optimally to defend national causes within their host societies. Finally, they called for establishing a robust network for Moroccan competences abroad. Providing an immediate and tangible implementation of this recommendation, a “WhatsApp” group dedicated to the young Moroccans in attendance was created right after the symposium to serve as a solid core for coordination, joint action, and tracking future initiatives.<\/p>\n
On the sidelines of this intellectual and diplomatic exchange, attendees were invited to a tea ceremony held in the traditional, authentic Moroccan style. This gesture embodied the values of generosity and hospitality deeply associated with Moroccan identity, offering an additional opportunity to deepen human and professional ties among the various participants.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
In line with strengthening the engagement of Moroccans living abroad in defending the Kingdom\u2019s supreme interests\u2014foremost of which is the Moroccan Sahara issue\u2014the Consulate General of the Kingdom of Morocco in Pontoise, France, organized a scientific and networking symposium yesterday, Saturday, June 13. The event was held under the theme: “Mobilizing Moroccan Competences Abroad […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":350,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[16],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-349","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-europe"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/naftimes.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/349","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/naftimes.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/naftimes.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/naftimes.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/naftimes.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=349"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/naftimes.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/349\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":355,"href":"https:\/\/naftimes.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/349\/revisions\/355"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/naftimes.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/350"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/naftimes.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=349"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/naftimes.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=349"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/naftimes.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=349"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}