On October 27 - November 2, Special Representative for Commercial and Business Affairs Lorraine Hariton led a delegation of Maghreb diaspora entrepreneurs, early stage investors from Silicon Valley, university representatives, and NGO leaders, to Morocco, Algeria and Tunisia. This delegation was unique and different from previous ones hosted by the Global Entrepreneurship Program in that it was a coordinated effort with the Partners for a New Beginning U.S.-North Africa Partnership for Economic Opportunity (PNB-NAPEO). Representatives from USAID, OPIC, and the Aspen Institute also joined the delegation.

1. PNB-NAPEO and GEP Maghreb Delegation
October 27-November 2, 2012
1 | Summary
On October 27 - November 2, Special Representative for Commercial Fast Facts
and Business Affairs Lorraine Hariton led a delegation of Maghreb
Who: A total of 20 prominent U.S.
diaspora entrepreneurs, early stage investors from Silicon Valley,
entrepreneurs and early-stage investors,
university representatives, and NGO leaders, to Morocco, Algeria
many from the North African diaspora
and Tunisia. This delegation was unique and different from previous
ones hosted by the Global Entrepreneurship Program in that it was a When: October 27-November 2, 2011
coordinated effort with the Partners for a New Beginning U.S.-North
Where: Casablanca, Algiers, Tunis
Africa Partnership for Economic Opportunity (PNB-NAPEO).
Representatives from USAID, OPIC, and the Aspen Institute also Why: To foster new partnerships and
joined the delegation. build key relationships among American
entrepreneurs, investors and the
This delegation showcased the talent of young innovators in the Maghreb’s brightest innovators
region and highlighted entrepreneurship as an exciting job
opportunity for youth. The 20 most promising start-ups in each What happened:
country were pre-selected by the PNB-NAPEO local network and Start-up pitch sessions were targeted
advisory boards. These startups received mentoring and training at both mature start-ups and young
from delegates (which was the main focus of this delegation), entrepreneur teams
participated in a business plan competition, and heard from role There were institutional and one-on-
model diaspora entrepreneurs. The culminating event of the one mentoring workshops
delegation was the selection of three winning start-ups from each Delegates visited local universities,
country, received a three-month business incubation and business incubators, and business
entrepreneurship scholarship in Detroit, Michigan. The prize was centers
courtesy of TechTown Incubator, Wayne State University, and the Business angel roundtables focusing
American Arab Chamber of Commerce in Detroit. on best practices
Youth-oriented town halls
The delegation awarded 24 year old Moroccan entrepreneur Yassine highlighting Maghreb diaspora
El Kachchani, who was originally selected from Flexcible Information entrepreneurship success storiesand
Systems out of eight youth teams who presented business projects experience in the United States
on October 28. El Kachchani’s concept is a mobile application for The Maghreb Growth Fund was
Moroccan restaurants called La Carte Plz (http://lacarteplz.ma). created by our delegates with a
budget of $25,000 granted to
Kachchani, clearly thrilled by this opportunity, stated that he learned
promising and innovative projects in
about the delegation through a blog, adding that “I am really excited technology, energy and health.
about this opportunity; this is really life changing in a very positive
way.”
In Algeria, the winner is an innovative 25-year old, Youghourta Benali, founded Walletix which provides a way
to lower business and consumer transaction costs by taking advantage of Algeria’s well developed mobile
phone infrastructure, and providing an electronic complement to Algeria’s cumbersome, largely paper-based
payment systems. His company could be a breakthrough interim electronic payment system solution for
Algeria, especially where e-commerce doesn’t yet exist in this country.
Finally, the winner in Tunisia is a female professor, Dr. Souad Rouis, is the Founder of BiotechRDP whose
biotech company is the first of its kind in Tunisia, focusing on vaccines, and veterinary diagnostic kits. This
company was established in 2008, specializing in the production of antigens and antibodies necessary for the
manufacture of immunodiagnostic kits for veterinary diagnosis, sanitary analyses and toxicity tests. The
"immunodiagnostics" based on the method of studying antigen-antibody reactions to detect the presence of

2. a virus or a bacterium. The prize at Techtown will further develop her business plan to market it more for
international markets.
2 | GEP in the Maghreb
Inspired by President Barack Obama’s June 2009 Speech in Cairo calling for a New Beginning with Muslim
communities around the world, the GEP is a U.S. State Department-led effort to promote and spur
entrepreneurship around the world. The GEP brings U.S. and local partners together to work around six main
activities related to supporting entrepreneurship in Indonesia: 1) identifying opportunities, 2) training
aspiring entrepreneurs, 3) connecting and sustaining them, 4) assisting with access to funding, 5) enabling
policy decisions, and 6) celebrating entrepreneurs.
Mentoring session, with our delegate
Joanna Harries and a start-up in Tunis
Entrepreneurship Delegates and Participants
3 | Delegates
Delegates were selected from leaders in the U.S. venture capital and technology industries. Individuals were
invited to join the delegation based on their expressed interest in cultivating and expanding the
entrepreneurial ecosystem in the Maghreb.
Maghreb Entrepreneurship Delegation:
Mustapha Baha: Angel Investor, Pasadena Angels
Lloyd Baroody: Entrepreneur and Angel Investor, Golden Seeds
Ghazi Benothman: Head of Asset Management, Malaz Capital
Sid Ahmed Benraouane: Senior Lecturer, University of Minnesota and TechWadi
Ahmad Chebbani: Co-founder of American Arab Chamber of Commerce and Techtown Incubator
Ahmed El-Alfi: Founder & Chairman, Sawari Ventures, LLC
Craig Hanson: Partner, Next World Capital
Joanna Harries: Director of International Expansion, Endeavor
Jennifer Kushell: President and Co-founder, Your Success Network (YSN)
Kevin Langley: Chairman Elect, Entrepreneurs’ Organization
Said Ouissal: Vice President of Strategy & Customer Engagement, Ericsson IP & Broadband
Shervin Pishevar: Managing Director, Menlo Ventures
Sami Ben Romdhane: Senior Director, eBay
Wesley David Sine: Associate Professor of Management and Organizations, Cornell University
Driss Temsamani: Senior Vice President of Marketing, Citigroup Global
Jacqueline Strasser: Deputy Chief of Staff and Senior Advisor to the President, OPIC
Kathleen Wu: Economic Growth Officer, USAID

3. U.S. – North Africa Partnership for Economic Opportunity
The U.S.-North Africa Partnership for Economic Opportunity (NAPEO) is a regional public-private partnership
launched by the U.S. Department of State and co-led with The Aspen Institute to promote economic opportunity
through increased links between the United States and North Africa (Algeria, Libya, Mauritania, Morocco, and
Tunisia). It is a regional initiative within Partners for a New Beginning (PNB), a global alliance of public-private
partnerships led by the CEO of The Coca-Cola Company Muhtar Kent, former Secretary of State Madeleine
Albright, and other prominent American business and civil society leaders committed to broadening and
deepening engagement between the United States and local communities abroad in response to the “New
Beginning” vision laid out by President Obama at Cairo University in June 2009.
What do we do?
The U.S. - North Africa Partnership for Economic Opportunity is a forum for increasing private sector and
government engagement. The PNB-NAPEO business network is composed of leading American and North African
companies and organizations, as well as local entrepreneurs, business leaders and partner organizations working
together on local advisory boards in each country. The network is a vehicle for members in the United States and
North Africa to identify, initiate, and sustain projects in North Africa that foster economic opportunity, especially
for youth. The network seeks to provide access to a pipeline of locally backed projects and business ideas at the
national and regional level for financing or partnership consideration. The U.S. Department of State collaborates
with local governments on policies that sustain SME development, entrepreneurship and job creation, including a
twice annual meeting with North African economic ministers.
Global Entrepreneurship Program
The Global Entrepreneurship Program (GEP) is a U.S. State Department-led effort to promote and spur
entrepreneurship around the world using the U.S. Department of State’s unique ability to catalyze, convene and
coordinate. Under the U.S. – North Africa Partnership for Economic Opportunity, GEP is the lead implementer for
Department of State entrepreneurship programming.
What do we do?
Work with non-governmental partners around six key areas that are essential to creating a successful
entrepreneurial ecosystem. These six areas include: identifying promising entrepreneurs, training them,
connecting and sustaining entrepreneurs, guiding them to capital, advocating for supportive policy and
regulations, and celebrating their successes.
Interested in joining a future Entrepreneurship Delegation? Please contact
the GEP at entrepreneurship@state.gov for more information.

4. Sample Press Clippings
Eastern Standard Time : 10:57 am : Friday, February 17th, 2012
http://moroccoworldnews.com/2011/10/u-s-north-africa-partnership-for-economic-opportunity-entrepreneurship-
delegation/13075
U.S.-North Africa Partnership for
Economic Opportunity
Entrepreneurship Delegation
October 27, 2011
The U.S. Department of State and Partners for a New Beginning (PNB) are hosting an Entrepreneurship Delegation to
Morocco, Algeria and Tunisia from October 27-November 2, 2011 as part of the U.S. – North Africa Partnership for
Economic Opportunity (PNB-NAPEO). The goal of the delegation is to foster and deepen relationships between U.S.
investors and entrepreneurs and their local counterparts in emerging markets and showcase local talent in the Maghreb. The
highlight of the event will be the selection of three starts ups, one from each Maghreb country, to receive a residency and
scholarship prize.
Organized in partnership with PNB-NAPEO local advisory boards in each country and managed by the State Department’s
Global Entrepreneurship Program (GEP), the delegation consists of 12 prominent U.S. investors, role-model entrepreneurs,
and academic leaders with experience in angel or venture investing and/or track-records as successful entrepreneurs and
mentors. Some delegates are members of the Maghreb Diaspora living in the United States. The delegation’s over-arching
theme will be “innovation,” defined broadly to include business sectors such as information technology, clean-tech, bio-tech
and ag-tech. Many of the delegates will be technology entrepreneurs and investors from Silicon Valley, but also include
representation from across the United States, including Detroit, Michigan, home to the largest Arab-American population.

5. The delegation will participate in pitch sessions and mentoring workshops to promote the most promising entrepreneurs in
the Maghreb region. Ten to fifteen promising startups in each Maghreb country will pitch their ideas to the delegation and
additional companies and young entrepreneurs will engage in one-on-one mentoring meetings. One winning start-up will be
selected by the delegation in each Maghreb country to receive a three-month incubation residency prize and one-semester
tuition scholarship to study entrepreneurship in the United States awarded by the Tech Town Incubator and Wayne State
University in Detroit. The delegation will also host business angel roundtables and mentoring sessions with local institutions
that mentor entrepreneurs themselves. In each country, the delegation will participate in town hall meetings, with youth.
Other highlights of the delegation’s visit include visits to local business incubators in each country, investor dinners hosted
by the local entrepreneurs and partners on the PNB-NAPEO Boards, and receptions hosted by U.S. Ambassadors in each
country.
Source: US Department of State
The Maghreb Delegation: A New
Beginning…
Posted by admin on Saturday, November 5, 2011 ·
By: Sid Ahmed Benraouane
http://techwadi.org/mena/the-maghreb-delegation-a-new-beginning%E2%80%A6/
I was sitting next to a beautiful woman who was carrying a musical instrument; I asked her what
was the instrument for and she said it is for playing Andalusia music, a genre of classical music
known in the Maghreb region. I asked her if she could play a bit and she replied of course! At
that moment, cabin crew had started cross checking the landing procedures, and by the time she
started singing, we were about few thousand feet above one of the most beautiful bays in the
world, La Baie d’Alger (The Bay of Algiers). I tugged myself into my seat and decided to let my
thoughts land on the wings of a beautiful voice in a land of which I know nothing. This was my
first encounter with Algiers, and it was one of my greatest moments.

6. This is how a member of the Maghreb Delegation, who knows about the world quite a lot,
described to me his visit to Algeria. He was part of the Maghreb Delegation trip to Morocco,
Algeria and Tunisia put together by the U.S. Department of State in the context of an initiative
launched last year in Algiers: the US- North Africa Partnership for Economic Opportunity,
known as NAPEO, which is part of the global alliance Partners for a New Beginning. The
Department of State’s Global Entrepreneurship Program spearheads key entrepreneurship
programming for the NAPEO initiative. The goal of the Maghreb Delegation led by Lorraine
Hariton and Julie Egan from the US State Department was to jump start a discussion about
entrepreneurship in the region, by identifying promising entrepreneurs and connecting them with
mentors willing to coach them on how to sharpen a business plan, pitch an idea, seek funding
and manage a venture.
To this date, GEP has conducted few similar delegations: Egypt, Indonesia, and soon in Turkey.
The idea is to help countries, on the tipping point of breaking away from a managed economy to
an entrepreneurial economy, take advantage of the US experience in building an ecosystem that
fosters entrepreneurship, innovation and job creation. At its core, GEP delegations are about
helping young entrepreneurs in these regions make sense of the Silicon Valley’s cultural DNA:
Why start ups like Google, Facebook, Twitter, and Groupon live and thrive in the US, and die
elsewhere?
In Algiers, the business plan competition launched by the Maghreb Delegation was tough. We
spent about two days reviewing business plans, coaching entrepreneurs, and mentoring them on
how to improve their performance in front of a judge panel. We looked at about 25 business
plans and we selected one start up that was quite unique for Algeria: an e-payment application by
founder Yourghouta Benali that provides consumers with the ability to operate commercial
transactions. This could be a breakthrough solution for Algeria as it offers an interim step, while
the country is working on its e-commerce strategy. The winner of this competition, along with
two other winners from Morocco and Tunisia, have been offered a special prize structured
through the NAPEO partnership: Spend a short stay in Tech Town (Detroit) and Silicon Valley
to learn more about the US market and, why not, develop a marketing strategy to commercialize
their product in the US and elsewhere. This kind of partnership that builds bridges between the
United States and the Maghreb is what the U.S. – North Africa Partnership for Economic
Opportunity is all about.
In the Maghreb Delegation, I represented TechWadi; there were about fifteen members
representing successful entrepreneurs, academics, angel investors, and VC companies. As a
judge and a mentor, I had a unique perspective. I was quite familiar with the specificity and the
needs of young Arab entrepreneurs in the region. I know what motivates and drives young
entrepreneurs, but perhaps more importantly, I know the challenges and the barriers that can
easily demotivate them. The concept of mentorship, for instance, which is quite known in the
US, has a different meaning in the region. A mentor could be looked at as an evaluator with
whom we can’t afford mistakes, share information, or simply someone from whom we should
hide our weaknesses. This difference in perception, of such a critical concept to
entrepreneurship, can makes mentorship a useless one. At TechWadi, and in addition to our
technical advice that we provide through our global mentorship platform, we are quite aware of
the type of cultural traps that can cost an opportunity.

7. In Algiers, we also had a chance to discuss the impact of the North African Partnership for
Economic Opportunity initiative. NAPEO was launched in Algiers in December 2010 at the US-
Maghreb Entrepreneurship Conference. Its aim is to build bridges between the peopls and
business communities in the United States and the Maghreb, support regional economic
integration, and support the dreams and jobs of young people in the region. One interesting
aspect of this partnership is that it focuses on local priorities. It does this through careful input
from local partners and entrepreneurs who have formed local advisory boards in each country to
support this initiative.
This initiative is also part of a larger framework, called Partners for a New Beginning, designed
to reflect President Obama’s vision of how the US should deal with 21st century global
challenges. As part of the Maghreb Diaspora living in the US, I have been dreaming about this
New Beginning for quite a while, perhaps more than two decades. A New Beginning, where
entrepreneurs, innovators, educators, and young women and men (the people that is) have a say
in how the US-Maghreb relations ought to be shaped.
Now that we have completed the process of building institutional frameworks, we can start
working on our promise: A New Beginning…
Telnet Holding meets US-NAPEO delegation
members on November 1st, 2011
As part of the conference Maghreb-US project initiated by the U.S. Department of State through the creation of US-North Africa Partnership for Economic
Opportunity (NAPEO), a delegation of businessmen, entrepreneurs, venture capitalists and investors in Silicon Valley and other parts of the United States

8. are visiting Tunisia from October 31st to November 3rd, 2011. A group of experts and business leaders came to meet Tunisian companies, business
organizations, foundations wishing to establish partnership relations. Tunisian institutions were selected following a call for applications issued by the
MEPI (Middle East Partnership Initiative) to the U.S. State Department. Round tables, workshops and working sessions were planned to allow members of
the US delegation to evaluate, coach and advise project developers and contractors.
Telnet was on the top of this action, organizing a dinner in honor of the US delegation present in Tunisia. Dinner held on November 1st at the Hotel
Concorde, has been enhanced by the presence of Mr. Jalloul Ayed, Tunisian Minister of Finance and S.E. Mr. Gordon Gray, U.S. Ambassador to Tunisia.
For this important occasion, Mr. Mohamed FRIKHA, CEO of Telnet Holding and also member of the TACC (Tunisian American Chamber of Commerce),
invited the members of the TACC, the members of the executive board of NAPEO and personalities from business, organizations and Tunisian syndicate.
Newsletter
The Tunisian American Professional Quarterly
February 4th, 2012 | Issue: 3
Tunisian American Young Professionals recent accomplishments; How you can contribute to our projects;
Tunisia’s investment value proposition; Obama’s plan for Tunisia; Members news and events; Tunisia podcasts;
The 30,000 Feet View
TAYP’s activities in the past 2 months
Dear TAYP members and followers,
Mohamed Malouche The highlight of the month of January 2012 for Tunisians throughout the
World was the Revolution's first anniversary celebration. We all reflected
back on all the previously unimaginable changes that Tunisia went through
in only the past 12 months. In the US, the revolution was celebrated through
art: an unforgettable and breathtaking concert was organized at the
Kennedy Center in Washington DC on January 9, 2012. Composer and
former Finance Minister Jaloul Ayed beautifully presented his piece called
"Hannibal Barca", which was played by both Tunisian and American
musicians. On the west coast, the first Tunisian film festival took place in
Hollywood featuring a number of new movies and performances by Tunisian
film makers and artists.
TAYP’s
I had the privilege to attend the first event, and was particularly moved by
President the national anthems played by the symphonic orchestra and the
emergence of the traditional Tunisian bendir in the background during the
symphony’s second movement which accelerated the rhythm and gave it a
warm Tunisian touch.
At TAYP, we are continuing to focus on promoting Tunisia’s value
proposition to US investors. To that effect, we will accompany his Excellency

9. the Ambassador of Tunisia in the US, Mohamed Salah Tekaya, in a
promotion roadshow that will take him to Chicago, Houston and Atlanta on
the week of Feb 13, 2012. The event, co-organized by TAYP and the
Bilateral US Arab Chamber of Commerce includes meetings with local
officials, investors and top tier companies in these 3 cities. We continue to
spread the word about Tunisia throughout the US by initiating dialogues with
the business community, while also encouraging them to learn more about
Tunisia rather than trying to “sell” it to them. We are the first to recognize the
needed reforms that Tunisia has to undergo, but we also want to bring
forward Tunisia’s unique advantages, its fundamentals and what it gained
from the revolution in terms of freedom, scrutiny and increased
transparency.
Finally, the challenge and uncertainty of the current democratic transition
has to be put in context. Investors are not expecting Tunisia to be
completely safe and stable today or any time soon. They are seeking to
understand what aspects of Tunisia are predictably safe and stable. The
answer to that lays in the fundamentals of Tunisia as a traditionally peaceful,
educated and civilized country, often referenced as the Switzerland of
Africa.
On the entrepreneurship side, we are very excited by the upcoming
“entrepreneurship and investment conference, that will be held this
summer (July 16-19) in Monastir, and that TAYP is co-organizing with our
friends at NATEG. This event will not focus on high growth entrepreneurs
but rather on graduating and graduate students in Tunisia’s top engineering
schools. We will do our utmost to share with them our experience, the
lessons we have garnered over the years, and to be mentors to this new
young generation. We look forward to working with GIST, GEP, and local
partners to organize this important event, and we welcome the help and
support of any other interested parties.
On both entrepreneurship and investment, I reiterate our TAYP motto: there
is simply No Time To Lose. We will continue to help young Tunisian
entrepreneurs through mentoring, technical and financial support, and we
will also continue to contribute to making Tunisia’s value proposition
stronger.
Sincerely,
Mohamed Malouche
To learn more, visit our Tunisian American Young Professionals site, e-
mail us, or follow us on Facebook Tunisian American young
Professionals

10. Delegation of US Based Investors Welcomed to
Tunisia
http://www.tunisia-live.net/2011/11/01/north-africa-partnership-for-economic-opportunities-delegation-in-
tunisia/
Sadok Ayari | 01 November 2011 | 1 Comment
Maghreb Entrepreneurship Delegation Banner
In an effort to promote investment in North Africa, the US Department of State and Partners for
a New Beginning (PNB) have dispatched a delegation of 12 prominent entrepreneurs and early
stage investors to visit Casablanca, Algiers and Tunis under the US-North Africa Partnership for
Economic Opportunity (PNB-NAPEO). Headed by the Lauren Hariton– the US Special
Representative for Commercial and Business Affairs at the State Department, the delegation
arrived in Tunis on October 31st and will be staying until November 2nd.
The delegation was welcomed to Tunis by a reception at the Movenpick Hotel by the Tunisian
American Chamber of Commerce, Tuninvest, Coca-Cola and Swicorp. The US Ambassador to
Tunisia, Gordon Gray was also in attendance.
In welcoming remarks, Ms. Hariton announced the delegation’s strong interest in investing in
Tunisia and in contributing an added value to the Tunisian economy. She also stressed the fact
that the delegation represented potential investment in many sectors of the Tunisian economy,
“The delegation will not only focus on IT, there will also be a focus on huge growth businesses
such as clean energy, industry and tourism.”

11. Regarding the capacities of the Tunisian labor force, Ms. Hariton also highlighted the need to
provide training and mentoring for Tunisian youth to step up their capabilities in order to further
integrate the Tunisian economy in the global market. Moreover, according to Ms. Hariton,
Tunisia can be a showcase in the region since she considers it as the most prepared North
African country to undertake change quickly, “Tunisia is more ready than any other nation in the
region to undertake rapid economic growth.”
The only major roadblock to a foreign investor is assurance of a safe investment climate, “The
most important issue for investors now is the security of their investments. Money should be
secured.”
As far as the American government’s support for the Tunisian transition is concerned,
Ambassador Gordon Gray reassured the investors present that US support for post-revolution
Tunisia is not conditioned on the outcome of the elections, “We are not supporting an outcome,
we are supporting a process… we are supporting democracy in Tunisia.”
Home » Economy » The Maghreb Growth Foundation Provides Financial Support for Young Moroccan Entrepreneurs
The Maghreb Growth Foundation
Provides Financial Support for Young
Moroccan Entrepreneurs
Loubna Flah
Morocco World News
Casablanca, January 31, 2012
The Maghreb Diaspora in the US joined forces with the US State Department in coordination with the PNB Napeo Aspen
Institute and the Consulate General of the Kingdom of Morocco to create a fund that benefits primarily young entrepreneurs
in Morocco, Algeria and Tunisia according to the Moroccan daily “Aujourd’hui le Maroc. The Maghreb Growth Foundation
aims to match Morocco’s emerging entrepreneurs with the Moroccan diaspora in the United States who will help them
succeed in their business ventures and to build economic prosperity across the region.

12. The US Department of State and its special agencies like US Aid and other partners will provide guidance and effective
mentoring, including on tools, resources and materials. The whole idea revolves around a Mentor Match program
spearheaded by the Moroccan diaspora who will create profiles describing their expertise and area of interest. This database
will be made available to young Moroccan proteges who can present their projects.
Driss Temsamani, President of The Moroccan-American Coalition and Vice President of Citi Group in charge of planning
and marketing for Latin American countries initiated the project. The creation of the Maghreb Growth Fund, dedicated
mainly to information sciences, is the culmination of Moroccan diaspora efforts. The project, announced during the last US-
Maghreb Entrepreneurship Conference provides local young managers with the Moroccan and American expertise in the
domain of entrepreneurship. A budget of $25,000 will be granted to each promising and innovative project in the fields of
technology, energy and health.
The Maghreb Growth Foundation project tour will be inaugurated in Morocco and carried out equally in Tunisia and Algeria.
Mr. Temsamani explains, “We have put forward a strategy in partnership with investors from the Maghreb and Arab
Diaspora in order to sponsor innovative entrepreneurs who strive for financing.” The Maghreb Growth Fund will be
activated in the Maghreb countries in accordance with national legislation, infrastructure and contextual differences. Project
managers are expected to return 18% of their profits built during the five years of execution. During the take off stage that is
expected to last one year, the project files will be submitted to American consulting agencies to start their realization. Once
launched, the projects will be closely monitored by the PNB Napeo, formed mainly by Moroccan companies.
This ambitious initiative is likely to provide potential entrepreneurs with a new management model that would enable them
to penetrate national and international markets. In an interview with Medi Sat TV Mr. Temsamani points out, “The
Moroccan diaspora is determined to be a piece and parcel in the development of Moroccan entrepreneurship. We want to
provide support for Moroccan companies and generate job opportunities.” He conjectures that the project will set out the
terms of cooperation between Moroccan emigrants in the US and young mangers in Morocco. He adds, “Start up companies
often toil to find financing for their take-off. Therefore the project aims at sponsoring innovative and promising
entrepreneurs in their ventures, while forging a sustainable partnership with Moroccan investors.”
The MGF mentorship project is expected to inject new blood in the Morocco-US Free Trade Agreement that has been
dawdling, since its signature in 2004. Mr. Temsamani points out that Morocco has an economic potential in agriculture and
in human resources that could be valued. The real challenge is to set an adequate strategy to penetrate the American market.
The Moroccan disapora in the US is estimated at 150,000 emigrants. The Project leaders envision expanding cooperation
opportunities between Morocco and the US. The project forerunners aim also at boosting their political and economic
participation as US citizens who can affect political life in the United States.
© Morocco World News