In an exclusive interview with Atalayar, on the sidelines of the 10th Hispano-Moroccan Conference on Sea, Transport, and Logistics, José Estévez, President of the Spanish Chamber of Commerce in Tangier-Nador, emphasized the great importance of cooperation between Morocco and Spain.
During the event, held at the Barcelo Hotel in Tangier, key topics such as digitalization, innovation, cross-border cooperation, and environmental challenges in the transport and maritime sectors were discussed. Estévez expressed his satisfaction with the large turnout at this tenth edition of the conference.
“Spain and Morocco always say they are destined to understand each other. It’s not that we are destined, I mean geography cannot be changed. What happens is that I always talk about respect,” he stated.
“Yes, we need to respect each other more. I think that in recent years, and I am speaking now as Spain, we respect Morocco much more, we consider it an important partner, given the numbers and the evolution of the country; if we are not united, we will never achieve the goals we want to set.”
Estévez also spoke about Morocco’s efforts to attract investments through the amendment of the Investment Charter, which promotes the arrival of Spanish investors in the northern region of Tangier-Tetouan-Al Hoceima. He highlighted the importance of the new Investment Charter and reminded that King Mohammed VI has prioritized improving Morocco’s legal infrastructure to attract investments. The President of the Spanish Chamber of Commerce also emphasized the potential of the Nador region, particularly the Nador West Port, which will have a container capacity of 12 million, greater than the capacity of Tangier Med of 9 million.
“I think that Nador is also a very important area, and we must ensure safety and guidance, especially guiding and communicating, so that people know where they come from, how they can invest, because we are at a short distance, but there is a different culture. Yes, it is necessary to adapt and know how to do business here,” said Estévez.
Regarding Spanish ports, he said that cooperation with Tangier Med has led to an increase for everyone, with the city of Motril being very involved in the development of the Nador port.
He stressed the importance of Spain’s involvement in the new port and not leaving it solely to German investors who have recently come to collaborate and invest in all the services, transport, and logistics of the new port.
Estévez also spoke about the development of the Dakhla port in the Sahara region, which should complement the Canary Islands and the Atlantic coast, a major initiative of the King for the stability of the Sahel, a sensitive area.
Estévez concluded the interview by expressing his satisfaction with the changes in the Marhaba operation (Crossing of the Strait of Gibraltar), which has become more efficient and smoother thanks to digitalization and modernization compared to 30-40 years ago.
However, he noted that the schedules set by maritime companies are not always respected, leading to long waiting times for trucks to be loaded onto the ships.
Morocco World News
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