France’s Minister of Culture Rachida Dati will pay an official visit to Morocco’s southern provinces on February 17 and 18, as part of efforts to strengthen cultural cooperation between Morocco and France, according to media reports.
During her visit, Dati and her Moroccan counterpart, Mohammed Mehdi Bensaid, will inaugurate the French Cultural Center in Laayoune.
Dati’s itinerary includes a stop in Tarfaya, where she will visit “Casa del Mar”—a fortress built in 1882 by Scottish explorer Donald Mackenzie—as well as the “Antoine de Saint-Exupéry Airmail Museum”, which highlights the legacy of the French writer and his historical connection to Morocco.
She will also meet with officials from the Institut Français du Maroc to review the final preparations for the new cultural center, a major milestone in Franco-Moroccan cultural cooperation.
The visit will conclude with the signing of an agreement between the French Embassy in Morocco and a royal foundation dedicated to arts and culture.
Dati will then travel to Dakhla, where she will explore a prehistoric rock engraving site along with Moroccan officials. The minister will also inaugurate new facilities at the regional branch of the Higher Institute of Audiovisual and Film Professions (ISMAC) and announce extra support for training local professionals in cinema and culture.
The visit will conclude in Rabat, where Dati will participate in several cultural meetings and oversee the signing of agreements between French and Moroccan institutions. Among the signings is the renewal of the partnership between the National Institute for Preventive Archaeological Research (INRAP) and the National Institute of Archaeology and Heritage Sciences (INSAP).
Dati will also announce Morocco’s selection as the guest of honor at the “Malraux” Forum on Video Games and witness the signing of cooperation agreements between the National Library of the Kingdom of Morocco and the National Library of France.