Abdel Salam Bakrat, Governor of the Laayoune-Sakia El Hamra region, received, on Monday in Laayoune, Maria Milagre de Peña Delgado, Consul General of the Democratic Republic of Sao Tome and Principe in the largest metropolis of the Moroccan Sahara.
The development gains of the southern provinces, and the successive diplomatic victories achieved by the Kingdom in the Moroccan Sahara issue, formed the focus of the speech delivered by the governor of the Laayoune-Sakia El Hamra region, Abdel Salam Bakrat, during a reception for the newly appointed head of the diplomatic corps in the capital of the southern provinces.
The Governor of Laayoune expressed his pride in the strong fraternal relations existing between the two countries, stressing the Kingdom of Morocco’s keenness to develop and develop relations with the Democratic Republic of Sao Tome and Principe. In everything that would achieve common goals and aspirations, they pointed out that “the opening of the Consulate General of Sao Tome and Principe in Laayoune in January 2020 is an important political and diplomatic gesture that strengthens the Moroccanity of the Sahara through law and history, with the will of its inhabitants and with the support of the international community and the friends of Morocco.”
In the midst of these discussions, Bakrat highlighted the natural and economic capabilities of the Laayoune-Sakia El Hamra region, which aspires to be a leading economic pole at the national level, and a pivotal platform for trade exchanges between Europe and sub-Saharan Africa, thanks to the new development model for the southern regions of the Kingdom that he launched. King Mohammed VI in 2015.
During this meeting, the chief official of the Laayoune-Sakia El Hamra region also focused on the diverse offer provided by higher education and vocational training in the region, citing the Higher School of Technology and the various institutes affiliated with the Office of Vocational Training and Employment Promotion, and stressing the readiness of the region to receive students from the Republic of Sao Tome and Principe who wish to complete their studies in Laayoune.
For her part, Maria Delgado, Consul General of the Democratic Republic of Sao Tome and Principe in Laayoune, praised the strength of the close historical fraternal relations between her country and the Kingdom of Morocco, stressing her country’s government’s keenness to “strengthen various aspects of bilateral cooperation and coordination between the two countries and serve common interests.”
The former Minister of Women’s Rights in the Sao Tome government indicated that her appointment in the city of Laayoune as head of a diplomatic body “confirms once again the country’s permanent support for Morocco regarding the Sahara issue,” stressing that “the autonomy initiative presented by Morocco is the practical and logical solution to settle this artificial conflict.” .
In her statement to the press, following the discussions she held at the headquarters of the state of Laayoune, the Consul General expressed her hope to see bilateral ties develop in the near future to include promising economic fields, noting that Morocco “shares with the Democratic Republic of Sao Tome and Principe the peaceful vision regarding the management of international relations.”
It is worth noting that the Democratic Republic of Sao Tome and Principe was one of the first four countries to open its diplomatic representations in the Moroccan Sahara. The opening ceremony of the Consulate General in Laayoune was chaired by the Minister of Foreign Affairs, African Cooperation and Moroccans Residing Abroad, Nasser Bourita, and his counterpart, Elsa Teixeira de Barros Pinto, in January 2020.