The Minister also attended, on the sidelines of the work of this summit, the opening of the Forum of the Arab Organization for Administrative Development where she was part of a panel discussion held under the theme ” Are we ready for digital transformation? “. In her speech during this session, which was attended by many experts and government officials, the Minister spoke of the attractiveness of the Kingdom in terms of digital infrastructure, thanks to which it ranks third in Africa, and the digital transformation plays a major role in the socio-economic development of Morocco, in accordance with the Enlightened Vision of His Majesty King Mohammed VI, May God Assist Him.
This working visit was also punctuated by bilateral meetings which brought together the Minister with senior Emirati officials. Ms. Ghita Mezzour notably met with Mr. Omar Bin Sultan Al Olama, Emirati Minister of State for Artificial Intelligence, Digital Economy and Teleworking to discuss ways to strengthen bilateral cooperation in the field of artificial intelligence and of the digital economy. The two parties have agreed to study a partnership project between the two Ministries aimed at promoting the ecosystem of start-ups and training Moroccan skills in the field of artificial intelligence.
The Minister also met with Mrs. Ohood Khalfan Al Roumi, Emirati Minister of State for Government Development and the Future, to study the prospects for cooperation in the field of digitization of public services, in particular to draw inspiration from the experiences success stories carried out in the United Arab Emirates. In this context, the Minister for Digital Transition and Administrative Reform held a working session at the headquarters of the “Dubai Digital Authority”, with Mr. Hamad Al Mansouri, Managing Director Dubai Digital. The Minister was accompanied by Mr. Abdelaziz Babqiqi, Director General of the Moroccan Office for Industrial and Commercial Property (OMPIC), as well as representatives of the Ministry of Justice.
This working meeting was an opportunity to discuss the digital transformation process carried out by the Emirate of Dubai over the past 20 years, which has made it possible to achieve a level of citizen satisfaction of more than 90%, particularly with regard to the digitization of public services. The meeting also allowed Emirati officials to present the successful experience of “Dubai Now”, the unified application for city government services, which provides more than 120 smart services from more than 30 government and private agencies.
The Minister also held a bilateral meeting with Mr. Ulvi Mehdiyev, Chairman of the State Agency of Public Services and Social Innovations of the Republic of Azerbaijan, with the aim of promoting the memorandum of understanding that already exists between the two parties, and discuss possibilities for further cooperation in the field of digitization of public services.
Azerbaijan has in fact carried out a successful experiment in this field, through the establishment of the ASAN service (Azerbaijan Service and Assessment Network), the objective of which is to make public services more efficient, more transparent and more easily accessible to citizens. On this occasion, the Minister visited the Azerbaijan pavilion at Expo 2020 Dubai.
Also in Dubai, and with the aim of encouraging the initiatives of Moroccan institutions participating in Expo Dubai 2020, the Minister went to the “Annual Investment Meeting” in Dubai, where she led a visit to the stand of the Moroccan Agency for the Development of Investments and Exports (AMDIE). This visit was an opportunity to discuss ways to promote Morocco as a destination of choice for investors in the digital field. Ms. Ghita Mezzour also attended a conference organized by the Moroccan Capital Market Authority and the Casablanca Stock Exchange as part of the “Morocco Capital Market Days”, which aim to shed light on the attractiveness of financial markets of the Kingdom, particularly with foreign investors.
Thus, this working visit of the Minister of Digital Transition and Administrative Reform to the United Arab Emirates has made it possible to promote exchanges of experience, promote new partnership prospects and strengthen privileged bilateral relations and fraternal relationships that exist between the United Arab Emirates and the Kingdom of Morocco.
