In the framework of the decision "to disengage from the field of agriculture production" the Moroccan government has presented a tender for 55,000 hectars of arable land, currently belonging to the national companies SOGETA and SODEA.
Yabiladi reports that while the vast majority of offers came from Moroccans (86%), European bidders have presented 69 offers (14%), including 39 offers from France, followed by Spain with 20 offers, Russia 6 and Portugal 4 offers.
However, it should be noted that some of the Moroccan offers are actually based on partnerships between Moroccans and foreigners including, in particular, 12 offers with French partners and 7 offers with Spanish partners.
Yabiladi added that the second phase of selecting the best offers will consist of evaluating each project according to the following criteria: 15 points for the references provided by the investors, 20 for the economic and financial coherence of the project, 45 points for the investments to be realized and 20 points for job creation.
The final decision in this first tender of public lands will take place during August 2005.
