The Türkiye-Morocco Business and Investment Forum took place in Istanbul

As part of the day-long event, presentations on investment opportunities between the two countries, parallel sessions focused on target sectors, and bilateral business meetings between companies were held. Trade Minister Ömer Bolat expressed his gratitude to the approximately 400 Turkish businesspeople attending the forum, emphasizing that the event would mark an important milestone in the economic relations between Türkiye and Morocco. Bolat also announced that at the end of January, they would visit Morocco with a strong delegation from both Türkiye’s public and private sectors.

Bolat pointed out that significant progress has been made over the last 20 years thanks to the close and intensive cooperation between the state leaders of the two countries, noting that economic relations accelerated after the Türkiye-Morocco Free Trade Agreement came into effect in 2006. He stated that the two countries have important partnerships in investment, trade, industry, agriculture, and transportation thanks to their agreements with the EU and their geostrategic locations.

Trade Minister Ömer Bolat emphasized that Türkiye holds a strategic position for access to the Eurasian region, the EU, the Middle East, Africa, and Asia. He noted that Türkiye and Morocco are integrated into the industrial sector and value chain through mutual and other international investments, adding:

“Since 2003, we have been carefully implementing the strategy initiated by our President to develop economic relations with African countries. Within this framework, Türkiye’s total trade with African countries increased from $5.5 billion in 2003 to $37 billion by the end of 2024, marking an approximately 6.5-fold increase. Since Türkiye’s Free Trade Agreement with Morocco, Morocco’s exports to Türkiye have increased ninefold, while Turkey’s exports to Morocco have increased eightfold.”

Minister Bolat recalled that as of last year, bilateral trade between the two countries was around $5 billion, emphasizing the importance of conducting trade on a balanced, win-win basis. He noted that accelerated mutual investments also enhance economic relations and total foreign trade. Bolat stated that Türkiye’s investments in Morocco are primarily concentrated in the automotive, retail, cleaning products, textile, mining, and logistics sectors, adding:

“So far, our contractors, who have successfully completed over 2,000 projects worth $100 billion in Africa, have also completed 113 construction projects worth $4.2 billion in Morocco, including both infrastructure and superstructure works.”