Lessons from Morocco: a Blueprint for Future EU-Global South Relations?

What does the future hold for EU-Africa cooperation? Are we witnessing a true partnership of equals or simply old patterns dressed in new language?In this new podcast series by the Istituto Affari Internazionali (IAI), Europe and Africa: Shaping a New Era of Dialogue, we explore the evolving relationship between the two continents at a time of shifting global power balances. Building on extensive field research and local engagement, each episode delves into the key drivers of change and the challenges ahead for an equal and sustainable partnership.In this third episode, hosted by Filippo Simonelli, Researcher in the Italian Foreign Policy Programme at IAI, the focus shifts on Morocco. The country, a self-defined “Switzerland of Africa”, is trying to build a solid commercial partnership with Europe thanks to its internal stability and stable economic growth. Yet, international tensions from time to time with countries such as Spain, along with never resolved issues such as the Western Sahara conflict, risk to undermine Morocco’s international standing. Balancing these conflicting tensions is no easy feat for Moroccan authorities, but European countries and the EU are still willing to engage more and more, and companies are benefiting from international partnership projects such as the Global Gateway and the Italian Mattei Plan. The future of this partnership remains to be written at most.