Think Forward.

La politique marocaine en Afrique : une dynamique engagée et fédératrice... 1747

Aziz Daouda, 5 mon.
Le Maroc, sous le règne de Sa Majesté le Roi Mohammed VI, mène une politique africaine volontariste et inclusive, visant à renforcer ses liens économiques, politiques, sociaux et culturels avec le continent. Cette stratégie privilégie un bilatéralisme pragmatique, favorisant l’intégration économique africaine, la coopération sud-sud et des partenariats stratégiques. Des accords ont été signés avec plus de 40 pays africains. Le retour du Royaume à l’Union africaine en 2017 a quant à lui marqué un tournant majeur dans cette stratégie et devenu un véritable accélérateur. Le Maroc s’intéresse aussi à la Zone de libre-échange continentale africaine (ZLECAf) comme relais de croissance. Parmi les projets clés dans cette perspective, le gazoduc Nigeria-Maroc, long de 5 600 km. Il reliera l’Afrique de l’Ouest à celle du Nord, et transportera quelques 30 milliards de m³ de gaz naturel par an. Il améliorera l’accès à l’énergie pour pas moins de 400 millions de personnes dans 13 pays. Il s’inscrit dans la stratégie marocaine de transition énergétique. Estimé à plus de 25 milliards de dollars, ce projet apporte des retombées majeures pour la sécurité énergétique et le développement régional dans la complémentarité. Le Maroc s’engage aussi fortement dans l’éducation et la formation des compétences, offrant chaque année près de 15 000 bourses à des étudiants de 49 pays. Environ 20 000 étudiants africains sont accueillis annuellement, dans des domaines tels que ingénierie, médecine, finance ou sciences sociales, grâce à l’Agence Marocaine de Coopération Internationale (AMCI). Ce programme ambitieux se veut former une nouvelle génération de cadres et renforce les échanges scientifiques et culturels. L’économie marocaine est pour sa part bien implantée en Afrique avec plus de 1 000 entreprises actives dans les secteurs bancaire, immobilier, télécom, agriculture et infrastructures. Attijariwafa Bank et BMCE Bank of Africa ou encore le Groupe Banque Populaire, sont présents dans plus de 26 pays, générant des centaines de millions de dirhams en Afrique subsaharienne. Ces institutions, avec 45 filiales et 4 succursales, réalisent environ 23% de leur chiffre d’affaires sur le continent, facilitant le financement des projets et l’intégration financière régionale. Wafa Assurance et le groupe Saham renforcent également cette présence dans de nombreux pays. Le système de santé marocain, reconnu pour ses infrastructures modernes et son personnel compétent, attire chaque année des milliers d’Africains pour des soins divers, renforçant les liens humains. Le Maroc développe aussi des projets dans l’agriculture durable, les énergies renouvelables, la formation professionnelle et les infrastructures, soutenus par la Fondation Mohammed VI pour le Développement Durable. Plus de 60 % des IDE marocains sont dirigés vers l’Afrique. Les échanges commerciaux du Maroc avec l’Afrique restent encore modestes par rapport à ses échanges totaux : environ 7 à 8 % du commerce extérieur marocain. La marge de progression est très grande et prometteuse. Ces échanges ont fortement progressé. En 2023, le volume total des échanges commerciaux entre le Maroc et les pays africains s’est élevé à 52,7 milliards de dirhams. Cela représente une croissance de 45 % par rapport à 2013, où ce volume était de 36 milliards de dirhams avec une croissance annuelle moyenne d’environ 10%. Maroc Telecom, présent dans 10 pays, dessert environ 54 millions de clients et contribue à l’intégration numérique. Des groupes comme Ynna Holding, Alliances ou Addoha mènent des projets majeurs dans plusieurs pays, notamment la construction de logements et de centres hospitaliers. En agriculture, OCP Africa opère dans 18 pays, formant plus d’1,5 million d’agriculteurs et fournissant des engrais adaptés aux terres et types d'agricultures locales. Son programme Agribooster facilite l’accès aux intrants, financements et marchés, stimulant la productivité et la sécurité alimentaire. OCP investit aussi dans des unités de mélange et de stockage d’engrais dans plusieurs pays et collabore à des projets innovants avec USAID et la Banque mondiale, notamment dans la production d’ammoniac vert. SOMAGEC, acteur portuaire marocain majeur, réalise des projets en Guinée équatoriale, au Sénégal, en Mauritanie, au Bénin et à Djibouti, employant des milliers de personnes. Africa Motors, filiale d’Auto Hall, développe la production et la distribution automobile en partenariat avec Dongfeng pour plusieurs marchés africains. Le sport est également un levier de coopération: la Fédération Royale Marocaine de Football a signé plus de 43 partenariats avec des fédérations africaines. À travers ses entreprises et projets, le Maroc consolide son rôle clé dans le développement africain, fondé sur la solidarité, l’intégration économique et la prospérité partagée, suscitant jalousie et reconnaissance. La coopération marocaine en Afrique est un pilier stratégique fondé sur le partage d’expertise, le développement économique et le renforcement des liens culturels. Grâce à son positionnement géographique et historique, le Maroc joue un rôle majeur dans l’intégration régionale, en soutenant des projets d’infrastructures, de formation, et d’innovation. Cette coopération se caractérise par un engagement durable visant à promouvoir la paix, la sécurité et le développement durable sur le continent africain. Le désenclavement proposé pour les pays du Sahel, par le recours au futur port de Dakhla va sans doute aucun davantage accélérer l'intégration recherchée à l'avantage des centaines de millions de pays africains. L’idée de construire des ports comme celui de Dakhla s’appuie beaucoup sur la géographie stratégique du Maroc. C’est un atout qui saute aux yeux quand on regarde la carte. Le Maroc dispose d’un littoral de plus de 3 500 km, tourné à la fois vers l’Europe, l’Afrique de l’Ouest et l’Amérique. Dakhla, en particulier, se situe à mi-chemin entre l’Europe et l’Afrique subsaharienne, ce qui en fait un point d’escale maritime naturel. La côte atlantique marocaine se trouve sur la voie qui relie la Méditerranée (via Gibraltar) à l’Afrique de l’Ouest et à l’Amérique. Cela permet de capter une partie des flux logistiques mondiaux. Le Maroc est à moins de 15 km de l’Europe à Gibraltar et en même temps relié à l’Afrique de l’Ouest. Le port de Dakhla s’inscrit dans cette logique : servir de hub logistique et industriel entre les deux continents. La zone de Dakhla offre des conditions naturelles favorables: eaux profondes et faible houle permettant de construire un port capable d’accueillir de grands navires, ce qui est rare sur la côte ouest-africaine. Avec la Zone de libre-échange continentale africaine, un port comme Dakhla permettra donc au Maroc d’être une porte d’entrée des flux commerciaux vers l’Afrique de l’Ouest et au-delà vers le Mali, le Niger, le Sénégal, la Côte d’Ivoire et plus. Le Maroc a compris, les partenaires africains aussi. L'avenir sera radieux main dans la main.
Aziz Daouda Aziz Daouda

Aziz Daouda

Directeur Technique et du Développement de la Confédération Africaine d'Athlétisme. Passionné du Maroc, passionné d'Afrique. Concerné par ce qui se passe, formulant mon point de vue quand j'en ai un. Humaniste, j'essaye de l'être, humain je veux l'être. Mon histoire est intimement liée à l'athlétisme marocain et mondial. J'ai eu le privilège de participer à la gloire de mon pays .


8100

33.0

From Passion to Meaning: The CAN as a Test of Truth for Africanity... 4

Aziz Daouda, Just now.
The Royal Cabinet's communiqué, published on January 22, 2026, following the CAN 2025 brilliantly hosted by Morocco, combines a call for calm after the Senegalese withdrawal episode with a celebration of an organizational success hailed across Africa and beyond. Through a measured and forward-looking tone, it transforms a sports tension into a demonstration of responsible continental leadership, faithful to a long-term vision for a united and prosperous Africa. Through the tone and content of the royal message, we understand that once the passion subsides, inter-African fraternity will naturally prevail: Morocco's success is also Africa's success. The CAN 2025 confirmed Morocco's ability to turn a continental tournament into a lever for development and influence. The smooth organization, modernized infrastructure, massive influx of supporters, and revitalization of key sectors such as tourism, transport, commerce, and services generated billions of dirhams in returns and around 100,000 direct and indirect jobs, with over 3,000 companies mobilized and some 500,000 supporters transported by Royal Air Maroc. The royal message places this success within a broader trajectory: that of a "great African country" which, in twenty-four months, has gained the equivalent of a decade of development in infrastructure and expertise, in service of its people and its continent. Without overlooking the "unfortunate" nature of the incidents in the Morocco-Senegal final, the communiqué opts for elevation over controversy. By recalling that once the passion has calmed, "inter-African fraternity will naturally prevail," it offers a mature reading of collective emotions and emphasizes that the Moroccan people "know how to put things in perspective" and reject resentment. The sports defeat thus turns into a symbolic and diplomatic victory: "hostile designs" and denigration are neutralized by strategic consistency, self-confidence, and the Kingdom's African anchoring. The Moroccan public in the stadium witnessed a grotesque tragedy, deliberately and premeditatedly staged, but was not fooled. They quickly understood, kept their calm and composure despite being deeply wounded. A noted and remarkable behavior that honors them and honors the Kingdom. In practice, as in history, Morocco-Senegal relations are imbued with a consolidated fraternity, strengthened on every occasion. The royal message thus takes on particular significance toward this brother country, with which relations are described as "exceptional and strategic," founded on shared memory, assumed African solidarity, deep religious fraternity, and strong economic convergences. The holding, on January 26 and 27 in Rabat, of the 15th Morocco-Senegal Joint High Commission, accompanied by an economic forum, gives concrete content to this resilient fraternity by relaunching investments, joint projects, and South-South cooperation in service of the two peoples and, by extension, all those in the region. Beyond the finalists, the communiqué addresses all African peoples by recalling that "nothing can alter the proximity cultivated over centuries" nor the "fruitful cooperation" forged with countries on the continent. It situates the CAN 2025 within a long-term strategy: capitalizing on intangible capital made of trust, visibility, and credibility, and using it as a springboard toward upcoming events, notably the 2030 World Cup, in an Africa that assumes its place on the world stage, seeks to establish it through continuity, and consolidate it. In this spirit, it is essential to reject deviations, racism, hate speech, media or ideological manipulations, from tarnishing our Africanity or denying its profound dignity. Being African means first sharing a geography, a history, cultures, struggles, and a common destiny, beyond borders, sports results, or political contingencies. We are not condemned to reproduce stupidity and hostility; on the contrary, we have the collective responsibility to make public space a place of encounter, listening, and fraternization, where intelligence, unconditional respect for human dignity, and curiosity about the other prevail over insult and stigmatization. In the straight line of the royal message, this CAN must remain a reminder: our African future will not be built in hatred or by imitating the worst reflexes, but in the ability to transform tensions into learning, competitions into bridges, and disagreements into opportunities for dialogue. We are Africans, together, through memory and through the future, and it is this shared consciousness that can make our stadiums, our cities, and our debates spaces of elevation rather than scenes of division. Attempts at destabilization orchestrated by some may, at best, cloud the horizon for the duration of a competition, but they cannot sustainably embed themselves in the consciousness of peoples. As facts emerge, they turn against their authors, now exposed to the world's gaze, unable to indefinitely mask their failures, the poverty of their mindset, and the pettiness of their designs. Where manipulation exhausts itself, truth always ends up prevailing, and with it the dignity of nations that bet on construction, fraternity, and the future rather than on intrigue and division.

African Football’s Leading Force: The Moroccan Model Amidst Regional Headwinds 317

Imad Khater, 1 d.
The curtain fell on AFCON 2025, leaving a trail of striking contrasts. While the event confirmed the Kingdom’s supremacy as a world-class logistical hub, the tensions witnessed during the final on January 18, 2026, in Rabat, served as a stark reminder of the contingencies still weighing on continental football. Between the seamlessness of the infrastructure and the archaic nature of certain disciplinary attitudes, a fundamental question emerges: how will the transition from CAF’s regulatory framework to that of FIFA in 2030 reshape the management of these organic crises? This shift represents more than a mere scaling up; it is a true paradigmatic rupture where technocratic neutrality will serve to sanctify Moroccan excellence. I. Moroccan Excellence: A Technological Showcase for Africa The massive investment deployed by the Kingdom—ranging from the deep modernization of sports complexes to the systemic integration of VAR—presented the world with the image of a modern, rigorous, and visionary Morocco. This material success, lauded by international observers, aimed to establish an African benchmark. However, this pursuit of perfection encountered a persistent psychological phenomenon: the "host country complex." In this configuration, organizational mastery is sometimes perceived by competitors not as shared progress, but as a lever of dominance, mechanically fueling theories of favoritism. The events of the final illustrate this at its peak. The disallowed goal for Ismaïla Sarr and the late-match penalty became, through the lens of regional suspicion, instruments of controversy rather than technically grounded officiating decisions. Yet, data from DM Sport reveals the opposite: Morocco was among the most penalized teams in the tournament. This discrepancy highlights a major flaw: technology is insufficient to validate a result unless it is protected by a jurisdictional authority perceived as exogenous. II. Solidary Leadership and the Diplomacy of Resentment It would be erroneous, however, to view this quest for excellence as a desire for isolation. On the contrary, Morocco maintains deep and unwavering historical ties with the majority of its sister nations across the continent. Faithful to its African roots, the Kingdom continues to actively promote continental football within CAF, offering its infrastructure and expertise to federations seeking professionalization. This "open-hand" policy ensures that Moroccan success translates into success for all of Africa. Nevertheless, such leadership breeds friction. A "diplomacy of resentment" has emerged from certain foreign media spheres—particularly in specific Arab and African countries—aiming to tarnish the prestige of the Moroccan organization. By framing Morocco as a favored "ogre," these narratives attempt to transform factual superiority into moral injustice. This media harassment specifically targets the emergence of a governance model that now aligns with the most demanding global standards. III. The Advent of "Cold Justice": Legal Sanctification The transition to FIFA’s aegis in 2030 will signal the end of the geographical proximity that fosters such smear campaigns. Unlike the continental framework, the globalization of officiating bodies will dismantle zonal rivalries. Where CAF must often navigate between diplomatic compromise and sporting imperatives, FIFA deploys a "cold justice"—purely procedural in nature. The chaos observed in Rabat would meet a surgical response in 2030. Article 10 of the FIFA Disciplinary Code is unequivocal: any refusal to resume play results in an automatic forfeit and severe sanctions. In 2030, the rule of law will act as a protective cleaver for the host, rendering victimhood narratives obsolete. IV. Technology and the "2030 Bloc": Toward an Indisputable Truth The 2030 edition, spearheaded by the Morocco-Spain-Portugal trio, will benefit from total judgment automation (Shadow VAR, semi-automated offside) and absolute transparency. The FIFA Hosting Agreement will prevail as a superior norm, guaranteeing impartiality. This legal framework will serve as a shield, preventing disciplinary incidents from being politically instrumentalized against the Kingdom. AFCON 2025 was a successful demonstration of organizational strength for Morocco, confirming its role as the driving force of African football. However, it also revealed that excellence remains vulnerable to peripheral noise. In 2030, the definitive anchoring in FIFA law will allow the Kingdom to transform its organizational prowess into a lasting institutional legacy. Sport, finally shielded from geopolitical dross, will align with the strategic vision of a Morocco turned toward the universal, making the rule of law the bedrock of its global legitimacy.

Light Pollution and the End of the Construction of Imagination – Part 1 394

Julius Melien, 1 d.
One of the memories I carry most fondly is when my interest in everything related to outer space first awakened. I clearly remember that in 1980 I saw a TV report about a lunar eclipse that we would be able to observe. The images shown on the news program impacted me so deeply that I could hardly sleep that night. The sight of the lunar craters, caught in that characteristic interplay of light and shadow, became etched in my mind. The next day, I questioned a teacher who was a friend of my family almost to the point of exhausting him, asking so many questions about the subject. Next year, I also saw TV advertisements announcing the theatrical release of "The Empire Strikes Back". In a way, my imagination was launched in a manner analogous to the catapult effect that spacecraft and space probes use when they swing around planets. There wasn’t a single clear night when I didn’t spend hours looking up at the sky, at the immensity of the universe. At that time, the night sky was truly dark, since light pollution caused by city lights did not yet have as significant an effect as it does today. In 1982, Carl Sagan’s series "Cosmos" also premiered on television, and even its soundtrack struck me deeply. Then, in 1984, with the debut of several animated series, two of them being "Groizer X" and "Star Blazers", the American version of "Space Battleship Yamato", I experienced yet another “gravitational catapult” effect, further fueling my imagination. In 1986, the passage of Halley’s Comet took over newspapers, magazines, TV programs, and even my school science books. That was it! This was the definitive confirmation of my passion for the space. At that time, however, I still lived in the realm of fantasy, driven solely by what my imagination brought me. I would look at the sky on clear nights and think that traveling through space was like it was in the movies, challenging, full of adventures and dangers, yet seeming simple and even comfortable. After all, in science fiction films, many aspects of physics were disregarded, using a kind of poetic license. But I grew up. I became a scientist. My gaze acquired a new perspective, yet without ever losing the magic of imagination from the beginning of this story. What came next? In the second part of this story, I will conclude… Clear skies to all, and Ad astra!