Contact: Mourad Beni-ich, 571-214-0842

VIENNA, Va., Sept. 16, 2013 /Standard Newswire/ - Once, the late King Hassan II said that Morocco is a tree; its roots go deep into Africa and its branches are over Europe. For decades, Morocco always maintained an outstanding bilateral relationship with many African nations, and it has been involved in many projects to assist and develop those nations. Morocco has developed a series of high-profile projects that have garnered attention in the continent's public discussion. For example, the kingdom's National Office of Electricity is now supplying electricity throughout the rural areas along the Senegal River, affecting many villages and thousands of people. Along the way, the initiative is expanding expertise honed inside the kingdom's borders, and which stems from an indigenous rural electrification program that has brought electricity to 98% of villages across Morocco.

On the security front, the kingdom is playing a greater role in supporting the struggle against jihadist groups and mitigating the culture of religious extremism that breeds them. In December 2012, Morocco, which was holding the rotating chairmanship of the UN Security Council, played a prominent role in the adoption of a resolution authorizing the deployment of an African military force to intervene in Mali, after an Al-Qaeda-affiliated group had conquered a portion of the country the size of France.

The Moroccan-Malian relationship has always been special; they have always maintained a strong relationship throughout history, and Morocco has always been a final destination or a transit country for Malian merchants and caravans. Now that Mali has been greatly affected by years of civil war, Morocco stepped up, as always, and extended its hand to assist. The Moroccan monarch instructed the government to provide Malians with the necessary medical assistance they need, which is due to a shortage in equipment and doctors, and set up a field in the capital Bamako, and dispatching humanitarian assistance to the Malian people. This humanitarian aid is another chapter in the humanitarian assistance Morocco has been providing to African nations and Mali in particular, and this field hospital will be accessible to all Malians from all corners of the country.

There is no doubt that African countries began to realize the geopolitical importance of Morocco in international relations and alliance building, and they realize that not having the Kingdom as an active member in the African Union was a miscalculated decision during the cold war era.