Economy Minister Traikov has visited Morocco in an effort to expand Bulgaria's exports and trade with the North African country.

Traikov was in Morocco for the ninth sessions of the Bulgarian-Moroccan Joint Economic Commission, during which the minister also met with representatives of the confederation of Moroccan enterprises, and with the regional investment center in Casablanca.

In Rabat he met with his Moroccan counterpart Ahmed Reda Chami, Morocco's Minister of Industry, Commerce and New Technologies.

In addition to boosting the bilateral trade, the emphasis in the talks was placed on potential joint projects for industrial zones and hi-tech parks.

The Bulgarian Economy Ministry has pointed as an example to the investment program of the region of Casablanca, where industrial zones and technology parks are planned to be built on a plot of 70 000 decares by 2020, and are supposed to create 1 million new jobs.

Bulgaria is said to be able to diversify and expand its exports to Morocco with foods, tobacco, cigarettes, textile and clothes, electric appliances, pharmaceuticals, and agricultural and industrial machines and equipment. Morocco exports to Bulgaria primarily clothes, leathers, and sea foods.

In 2009, the bilateral trade amounted to USD 33.8 M; of these Bulgaria's export was worth USD 12.4 M, and the imports from Morocco – USD 21.4 M.