Our day started on the right foot, we had a very productive meeting at the OCP Policy Center, Ambassador Loulichki and his team, who offered a comprehensive view on the current landscape, historical context, and geopolitical dynamics of migration in Morocco. Ambassador Loulichki explained that Morocco is forced to play a difficult balancing act between Europe and Africa. Facing diplomatic pressure from Europe, Morocco is also the second largest investor in Africa.
Our second meeting at Mohammed V University was held with a Professor of the Faculty of Economics and Social Sciences who also serves as the Coordinator of the Migration Research and Study Group (GREM) and the Secretary General of the Moroccan Association of Studies and Migration Research. Professor Khachani cautioned against conflating the issues of migration and security and discussed the results of GREM polls of migrants and emphasizing solidarity and human rights with migrants as the basis of Moroccan policy.
In our last meeting of the day, a professor at the International University of Rabat assessed the costs and interests behind migration flows, suggesting that greater mobility would reduce the negative impact of migration flows. At the same time, the need for border security programs to combat smuggling and other threats is quite real.Â
All in all, the day improved our appreciation of the wide spectrum of perspectives on migration in Morocco.