SIPPO Morocco launched three initial projects in SIPPO Phase 2
SIPPO Morocco is marking the start of SIPPO Phase 2 (until 2025) with three main activities: Networking with women's cooperatives for regional products (Sector Processed Foods), organising the second conference on the challenges of sustainability in the fish and seafood sector and building knowledge in e-marketing for the sector "Value added Textiles".
The first half year of the 2nd phase of the SIPPO programme was characterised by the operationalisation of the recommendations from phase 1, incorporating the new SECO and SIPPO guidelines on digitalisation, sustainability, networking and access to the international market, with a particular focus on the Swiss market. Three important projects have been implemented since the beginning of 2022:
Inclusion of women's cooperatives in remote areas of Morocco.
The first project concerns the strengthening of ASMEX's competencies and networking: within the framework of the cooperation agreement between SIPPO & GIZ, ASMEX's networking is to be expanded. In particular, women's cooperatives that offer local products in remote areas of Morocco are to be integrated, i.e. organic saffron and dried roses as well as their derivatives (essential oil, rose water, etc.).
During the support activities of the SIPPO experts, ASMEX was assisted in designing a grid for the selection and categorisation of cooperatives and export-ready enterprises, for which selection criteria were developed with field trials. At the end of the mission, SIPPO organised a workshop which prepared them for a successful participation in a hybrid trade fair. The training elements of the Trade Promotion Academy (TPA) for the area of "trade fair participation" served as source material: Market monitoring and new trends, business presentation and marketing tools, value proposition/USP/sales pitch, matchmaking and virtual meetings, the new EU law on organic certification, sales and marketing tips, and tips on identifying buyers, monitoring and evaluation and customer relation management.
Sustainability in the fish sector
The second action was on sustainability: The second conference on the challenges of sustainability in the fisheries sector of Morocco benefited the actors of the sector and other stakeholders. This conference took place on 10 March 2022 in a hybrid format. The conference included contributions from more than 25 national and international specialists in 3 dedicated panels:
- Sustainability of fisheries resources in Morocco.
- Development of marine aquaculture: economic, environmental and social challenges.
- Optimisation of fisheries value chains in Morocco.
The conference fulfilled the expectations of the organisers, created many ideas and identified guidelines for a sustainable future of the fish and seafood sector. The following main conclusions are already emerging:
Over the past two years, the COVID 19 pandemic has challenged us in many ways to work more closely together. Only in this way can we accelerate the implementation of structural reforms that will ensure the sustainability of fisheries resources for ourselves and future generations.
A sustainable rebuilding of this sector after the end of the pandemic must be done in a multidimensional approach based on four main pillars:
- Scientific research to support fisheries resource planning.
- Agreements for integrated planning among different coastal and maritime users (Blue Economy)
- Innovations for performance improvements by favouring clean technologies, such as renewable energies, digitalisation, e-administration, e-commerce
- Creating an appropriate framework and incentives and accompanying measures for profitable investments in the sector.
The concretisation of this approach is to be made possible through a public-private partnership that meets the challenges until 2030. The third SIPPO/FENIP Conference on Sustainability in the Fishing Industry will be held in March 2023.
Training in e-marketing
Finally, a third important measure is being implemented in the area of e-marketing. SIPPO is helping BSO AMITH (in the sector Value added Textiles) to better master the technical aspects of e-marketing, such as the production and writing of articles/blogs and the development of videos, and to learn about methods of dissemination and promotion in order to attract the interest of influencers and professionals in the sector and generate quality B2B leads.