Morocco: For or Against the TGV?
22 April 2012
Read by 1867 persons
Planned for 2015, the Moroccan TGV is not universally popular in the kingdom. Its detractors are mobilizing against a project they see as unnecessary. Its supporters, on the other hand, claim it will attract more investors and create jobs...
"It's a toy that Morocco can't afford": economist Fouad Abdelmoumni, spokesperson for the Moroccan left, doesn't mince words when talking about the TGV which, by the end of 2015, should connect Casablanca, the kingdom's economic capital, to Tangier, the large northern port. He's not alone in this view.
The money from the 14 trains ordered from Alstom could finance 5,000 schools or 25 university hospitals.
Recently, a dozen associations, gathered in a collective, even created a website, Stoptgv.com, to mobilize public opinion. We learn that the money for the 14 trains ordered from the French company Alstom could finance, at choice, 5,000 schools or 3,000 high schools in urban areas, 25,000 schools in rural areas, 100 engineering schools, 25 university hospitals, 16,000 socio-cultural centers, or even 10,000 media libraries!
Fouad Abdelmoumni also points out that entire regions of the kingdom remain "enclaved." The south of the country is not served by any rail line, whether it's Errachidia, a city with a state-of-the-art international airport, or even the very touristy Agadir. "The TGV risks further increasing inequalities in a country with 40% illiteracy," adds Karim el-Hajjaji, president of the student association Capdema. Health, education, and land development, he accuses, are the great forgotten aspects of a policy that focuses on pharaonic projects."
Informal Agreement and French Pressure
The TGV risks further increasing inequalities in a country with 40% illiteracy.
Beyond the debate on whether or not such a project is a priority, Capdema denounces the "opacity" surrounding it. It is not alone. Last October, Germany vetoed a loan from the European Investment Bank due to the lack of a tender process for supplying the future TGV trains: Berlin argued that the informal agreement with Alstom prevented other companies, starting with the German company Siemens, from trying their luck. It is this way of proceeding – and the fact that no elected Moroccan official protested – that particularly shocked the young Capdema activists. They see it as a sign of "bad governance contrary to the spirit of the new Constitution." They also criticize the French authorities – "who forced the sale of their TGV after failing to convince Morocco to buy the Rafale" – for not insisting that the procedures in place in France for this type of project be implemented, including the public inquiry. "Instead of the expected transparency, a form of omerta has settled in," says Karim el-Hajjaji. "No one knows the progress of the project, nor the basis for the financial estimates or traffic forecasts."
The new government is not questioning the project.
While Alstom did not wish to answer L'Express' questions, some French executives involved in this gigantic market admit, in hushed tones, that there was a "communication deficit," which may be behind the "misunderstandings." On the Moroccan side, Khalid Khairaine, project director, denounces a "campaign of denigration and disinformation." He assures that the National Office of Railways (ONCF, the equivalent of the SNCF) will respond "in due course."
Before its accession to power last November, the Justice and Development Party (PJD, Islamist-conservative) was very cautious about the TGV. Some of its members even openly advocated abandoning the project during the election campaign. Today, the time for protest is over. The Minister in charge of Relations with Parliament, El-Habib Choubani, affirms that it is not possible for the government to question a project decided by the previous team, unless parliamentarians impose a debate. But, he adds, "no such steps have been taken." For the rest, he is in line with the official discourse. "Importing foreign technology can only boost the country," he assures. He also mentions the diplomatic and economic interests at stake. "It's no longer purely a Moroccan affair," he admits. The project will be 80% financed by France and the Gulf States. Together, they will provide 19 billion dirhams (€1.6 billion), with Morocco providing the remaining 6 billion (€540 million). "That's 800 million dirhams per year, which will not affect our budget," the minister specifies. An analysis not shared by Fouad Abdelmoumni, who argues that interest on the debt will be borne by the taxpayer.
A First in the Maghreb
The French TGV has found its first outlet on the African continent in Morocco. For French industry, it's a godsend. Alstom will supply 14 double-decker trains for €400 million. This is the French manufacturer's first success abroad in high-speed rail since 1994 and its contract with South Korea. As for the SNCF, it assists the ONCF with project management. The industrial compensation agreement concluded by Alstom and the Moroccan state should create 5,000 jobs in ten years.
On the continent, there is currently only one other high-speed line, in South Africa, built by the Canadian company Bombardier. The second section, connecting Pretoria and Johannesburg, was inaugurated in August 2011.
A Boukalllouch.
Lexpress.fr
Published April 20, 2012.
Posted online April 22, 2012.
"It's a toy that Morocco can't afford": economist Fouad Abdelmoumni, spokesperson for the Moroccan left, doesn't mince words when talking about the TGV which, by the end of 2015, should connect Casablanca, the kingdom's economic capital, to Tangier, the large northern port. He's not alone in this view.
The money from the 14 trains ordered from Alstom could finance 5,000 schools or 25 university hospitals.
Recently, a dozen associations, gathered in a collective, even created a website, Stoptgv.com, to mobilize public opinion. We learn that the money for the 14 trains ordered from the French company Alstom could finance, at choice, 5,000 schools or 3,000 high schools in urban areas, 25,000 schools in rural areas, 100 engineering schools, 25 university hospitals, 16,000 socio-cultural centers, or even 10,000 media libraries!
Fouad Abdelmoumni also points out that entire regions of the kingdom remain "enclaved." The south of the country is not served by any rail line, whether it's Errachidia, a city with a state-of-the-art international airport, or even the very touristy Agadir. "The TGV risks further increasing inequalities in a country with 40% illiteracy," adds Karim el-Hajjaji, president of the student association Capdema. Health, education, and land development, he accuses, are the great forgotten aspects of a policy that focuses on pharaonic projects."
Informal Agreement and French Pressure
The TGV risks further increasing inequalities in a country with 40% illiteracy.
Beyond the debate on whether or not such a project is a priority, Capdema denounces the "opacity" surrounding it. It is not alone. Last October, Germany vetoed a loan from the European Investment Bank due to the lack of a tender process for supplying the future TGV trains: Berlin argued that the informal agreement with Alstom prevented other companies, starting with the German company Siemens, from trying their luck. It is this way of proceeding – and the fact that no elected Moroccan official protested – that particularly shocked the young Capdema activists. They see it as a sign of "bad governance contrary to the spirit of the new Constitution." They also criticize the French authorities – "who forced the sale of their TGV after failing to convince Morocco to buy the Rafale" – for not insisting that the procedures in place in France for this type of project be implemented, including the public inquiry. "Instead of the expected transparency, a form of omerta has settled in," says Karim el-Hajjaji. "No one knows the progress of the project, nor the basis for the financial estimates or traffic forecasts."
The new government is not questioning the project.
While Alstom did not wish to answer L'Express' questions, some French executives involved in this gigantic market admit, in hushed tones, that there was a "communication deficit," which may be behind the "misunderstandings." On the Moroccan side, Khalid Khairaine, project director, denounces a "campaign of denigration and disinformation." He assures that the National Office of Railways (ONCF, the equivalent of the SNCF) will respond "in due course."
Before its accession to power last November, the Justice and Development Party (PJD, Islamist-conservative) was very cautious about the TGV. Some of its members even openly advocated abandoning the project during the election campaign. Today, the time for protest is over. The Minister in charge of Relations with Parliament, El-Habib Choubani, affirms that it is not possible for the government to question a project decided by the previous team, unless parliamentarians impose a debate. But, he adds, "no such steps have been taken." For the rest, he is in line with the official discourse. "Importing foreign technology can only boost the country," he assures. He also mentions the diplomatic and economic interests at stake. "It's no longer purely a Moroccan affair," he admits. The project will be 80% financed by France and the Gulf States. Together, they will provide 19 billion dirhams (€1.6 billion), with Morocco providing the remaining 6 billion (€540 million). "That's 800 million dirhams per year, which will not affect our budget," the minister specifies. An analysis not shared by Fouad Abdelmoumni, who argues that interest on the debt will be borne by the taxpayer.
A First in the Maghreb
The French TGV has found its first outlet on the African continent in Morocco. For French industry, it's a godsend. Alstom will supply 14 double-decker trains for €400 million. This is the French manufacturer's first success abroad in high-speed rail since 1994 and its contract with South Korea. As for the SNCF, it assists the ONCF with project management. The industrial compensation agreement concluded by Alstom and the Moroccan state should create 5,000 jobs in ten years.
On the continent, there is currently only one other high-speed line, in South Africa, built by the Canadian company Bombardier. The second section, connecting Pretoria and Johannesburg, was inaugurated in August 2011.
A Boukalllouch.
Lexpress.fr
Published April 20, 2012.
Posted online April 22, 2012.
