Morocco and Tunisia are looking to expand their cooperation in the Information and Communication Technology (ICT) sector, a meeting in Tunis on Friday revealed.
According to a spokesperson from the Morocco Ministry of Communication, the move will help buttress and develop this “important” sector toward achieving goals that are “uniquely African and Arab.”
Morocco and Tunisia’s Ministers of Communication, Khaled Nasri and Oussama Romdhani, respectively, chaired the meeting in Tunisia. Both sides spoke on the need to cooperate in building a better relationship in the information technology sector.
The meeting comes on the heels of the 16th session of the Tunisian-Moroccan High Joint Committee.
“Those results,” the Tunisian minister told reporters after the meeting, “would further develop bilateral relations and hoist them to the level of the orientations set by the two countries’ leaders.”
He added that the cooperation agreement “reflected solidity of the ties binding the two countries, as shown by the recommendations the two committees issued and the breadths of the agreements and conventions concluded on this occasion.”
The cooperation will work in a number of fields such as the exchange of radio and television programs, co-operation in the sectors of written press and agency journalism, digitalization and conservation of archives, organization of the electronic press and exchanges of experience and expertise in training and the Internet, a joint statement from the ministers said.
Here in Morocco, government officials are excited about the possibility of working with Tunisia, a country they believe has the infrastructure ability to move Morocco into the global information age.
“We are confident that once we can set down some parameters and start building consensus between us and Tunis, this will show a great future for both countries,” said spokesman Amir Nozik.
He added that while the optimism is high, there should be a sense of realism throughout the process.
“It will take time before we see real and substantial progress on the ICT side of things, but we are confident it will happen in the immediate future, but people should not be overly excited before we see results.”
by Desmond Shephard
