The successful conclusion of the Institutional EU-Morocco Twinning Programme “Renforcement des capacités institutionnelles du Conseil de la Concurrence” for the reinforcement of the institutional capacities of the Competition Council of Morocco was marked with the closing ceremony of December 12th 2023, in Rabat, Kingdom of Morocco.
This meeting was an opportunity to present the main achievements of this project, in particular in matters of training of the rapporteurs of the Competition Council and the judiciary as well as discussion workshops with important players in the competitive ecosystem, particularly universities, the media and lawyers. The successful partnership also leaves behind an important legal infrastructure in the form of a platform/database containing analysis of the most significant caselaw of the European Courts and legislative developments in EU competition law (Digesta).
The ceremony was graced by the opening remarks of Their Excellencies the Ambassadors of the EU, Greece, Poland and Italy in Morocco.
The Presidents of the National Competition Authorities of the EU partner countries, Mr. Ioannis Lianos of Greece and Mr. Roberto Rusticelli of Italy and the Vice President of the Polish Competition Authority Mr. Daniel Mankowski expressed their satisfaction for the successful implementation of the program.
The President of the Competition Council of the Kingdom of Morocco, Mr Ahmed Rahhou welcomed the quality of this partnership which has experienced substantial achievements and which laid the foundations for future bilateral cooperation with the competition authorities having participated in this twinning with a view to capitalizing on the achievements of the project.
Τhe President of the Hellenic Competition Commission, Mr. Ioannis Lianos presented the database of European case law on competition law which includes the decisions of the competition authorities, which have become final, as well as the judgments rendered by the competent EU courts in this matter.
The component leaders Mr. Gianluca Sepe of Italy and Ms. Agnieszka Ciucias of Poland presented the results of the activities undertaken with an emphasis on training and regulatory convergence.
The Secretary General of the Competition Council of the Kingdom of Morocco, Mr Mohamed Abouelaziz expressed his satisfaction on the timely completion of all activities and stressed the importance of operation within a competitive ecosystem.
The Resident Twinning Advisor, Ms. Vasiliki Sylvia Kabalouri pointed out that the results achieved were the outcome of a true partnership and the exchange of expertise in the best interest of the beneficiary administration and stressed that the international community should seize the opportunity to support the Kingdom of Morocco as a country of reform and modernization.
The representative of the Moroccan Ministry of Finance, Mr. Oussama Chellaf congratulated all teams for their engagement and professionalism and underlined that the particular twinning program was a model for the efficient use of resources.
With his closing remarks the President of the Hellenic Competition Commission, Mr. Ioannis Lianos thanked the President of the Competition Council of Morocco for his vision and pointed out that the collaboration through the twinning program has been a truly enriching experience and that bilateral cooperation with the Moroccan Competition Council will continue in the years to come in the context of the MoU signed in 2022 with the Hellenic Competition Commission.
The closing ceremony was supported by the Directorates of International Relations of the Hellenic Competition Commission and the Moroccan Competition Council with the participation of the respective Directors Mary Chamilou and Maria Sbai Idrissi in the closing ceremony.
More information about the HCC’s international cooperation activities is provided on its dedicated webpage.