Rabat – Morocco and Switzerland started the “Swiss Partnership Marocco” project in Casablanca today in order to improve the legal framework of the North African country to protect intellectual and industrial property.
The Minister of Industry and Trade in Morocco, Ryad Mezzour, and the ambassador of Switzerland in Morocco, Valentin Zellweger, took part in the event.
The project has a budget of MAD 17.2 million and will take four years. It should help Moroccan companies and creators to better protect and use theirs intellectual property Rights, including intangible assets.
It also focuses on sensitizing interest groups for the importance of intellectual property and the guarantee of better protection and promoting innovation.
The Morocco project of the Swiss Partnership is financed by the Swiss State Secretariat for Economic Affairs (Seco). It is implemented by the Swiss Federal Institute of Intellctual Property (IPI) in cooperation with the Moroccan Office for Industry and Commercial Mobiles (Ompic) and other stakeholders.
Mezzour said that this initiative matches the growing focus of Morocco on innovation and technological development. The project is expanded for intellectual and industrial property in different cities, including medium -sized, to improve trade protection, he added.
According to the minister, the cooperation between Morocco-Switzerland is based on efficiency and targeted projects. Today’s agreement is a clear example of the strong partnership between the two countries, he argued.
In the meantime, Ambassador Zellweger confirmed the obligation of Switzerland to support Morocco’s institutional capacity in this area. He explained that Switzerland sees Morocco as a primary country for economic cooperation intellectually Property Protection as crucial for improving competitiveness, especially in agriculture through “origin names” (AOC) and patent protection.
“This partnership will strengthen innovation and competitiveness in Morocco and play an important role in the future of our economic relationships,” he added.
Abdelaziz Babqiqi, General Director of the Moroccan Office for Industrial and Commercial real estate, spoke about the Morocco strategy for industrial and commercial properties. He explained that this strategy aims to make intellectual property an important driver of a productive, innovative and integrative economy.
Babqiqi announced that Morocco achieved record numbers in the protection of intellectual property in 2024. The country registered 31,500 brands (an increase of 14%), 6,800 industrial designs (26% increase) and 2,900 patents.
