Chief Executive Officer of the Maghrebian Bank of Investment and Foreign Trade (BMICE) since January 2016, Noureddine Zekri has the heavy task of giving a concrete reality to this Maghreb institution which has just granted its first loan operation. Interview.
Can you come back to the BMICE’s missions and objectives?
To give you some pointers, the Maghreb Bank of Investment and Foreign Trade (BMICE) aims to strengthen the integration of the five countries of the Arab Maghreb Union (UMA): Libya, Tunisia, Algeria, Morocco and Mauritania .
It is a geographical area with potential and opportunities not yet exploited and its creation is part of the ongoing efforts of leaders and citizens of member states on the path of integration. The objective of the creation of the BMICE is to contribute to the building of a competitive and integrated Maghreb economy, through the development of intra-Maghreb investment and exchanges and by proposing solutions to regulatory and institutional barriers.
The Maghreb remains one of the least integrated areas in Africa, how will BMICE overcome this major obstacle?
You are absolutely right to note it. Not only Africa’s least integrated, but also globally because total intra-Maghreb imports account for only about 3.5% of their imports from the rest of the world.
Add to this the cost of “non-Maghreb” which translates for each country in the region by a loss of economic growth of 1.5% to 2% on average, with the resulting loss of creation jobs. The decision to create the BMICE has been judged by the Maghreb governments as one of the best ways to change the situation, as they are convinced that the development of business relations and exchange between Maghreb operators is a necessary condition for building an integrated economic area.
We are a young institution that aims to act as a force of proposal to raise the regulatory and institutional barriers hindering the development of Maghreb trade. To this end, we have developed Maghrebi skills with high-level technical, economic, financial and legal experts with knowledge of the realities of the Maghreb, which is a considerable asset for the implementation of projects involving several Maghrebi parties. In summary, to boost the momentum of Maghreb economic integration, BMICE acts mainly on two fronts: on the one hand, it conducts a series of studies and surveys that will serve as a basis for identifying opportunities to business and the removal of regulatory and institutional barriers; on the other hand, it provides funding for productive projects of common interest to ensure Maghreb economic complementarity. Certainly, to meet these challenges our work is not easy, but the existing potential of integration offers us a vast and varied field of action.
What is BMICE’s position in relation to development institutions such as AfDB, EIB and WB?
BMICE is not in competition with local entities or multilateral institutions. The proof ? Our first lending operation was carried out a few weeks ago as part of a syndicated Islamic financing agreement (Murabaha) involving a pool of donors including the International Islamic Trade Finance Corporation (ITFC), a member of the Islamic Development Bank (IDB), acting in the lead. With the African Development Bank (AfDB), we are in discussion to conclude a Memorandum of Understanding that will allow us not only to benefit from experience and expertise, but also to be able to co-finance projects of common interest. for the Maghreb countries. It must be said that the Multilateral Development Banks have welcomed the arrival of BMICE on the scene as most of them have included regional integration in their priorities. Our goal is to work in perfect synergy with these institutions to mobilize funds for regional integration of the Maghreb; our main asset being the ability to ideaate regional integration projects, as requested by our shareholders, the Maghreb states and the private sector.
Are BMICE resources sufficient to lead a development program?
The challenge is not the provision of resources, but our ability to identify projects of common interest and to influence the decisions of our various governments to create a business-friendly environment. It should be remembered that the BMICE is not a way to solve the financing problems of the Maghreb companies, but to finance projects with a vocation of integration. Its vocation is not to solve the solvency problems of companies, but to create complementarity, collaboration and partnership. Our overall strategy is no exception to the rules of all the major development institutions that first worked to forge credibility. There is no doubt that if BMICE succeeds in establishing this image, its resources will increase as much by the increase of its capital as by the financing of the lenders.
Your headquarters is based in Tunis, by which physical or relational channels will you be represented in the other Maghreb countries?
Although the creation agreement of BMICE has designated Tunis as headquarters, it provides that the Bank may open branches, agencies or offices in the countries of the Arab Maghreb Union, by decision
from the administration board. Thus, Mauritania will be the first member country to host a representative office, probably in the next few months, even weeks since the process of setting up the future structure is in a very advanced phase. It will be the same for our other member countries in the future.
It will be the same for other Maghreb countries that the BMICE will fully cover in a gradual manner.
Some countries in the Maghreb subregion want to join ECOWA, is this an asset or a threat for BMICE?
A threat ? Absolutely not ! I would say rather a complementarity for achieving a common goal, that of developing Africa. It must first be remembered that the accession of the Arab Maghreb countries to other subregional entities is not new. Of the 7 regional economic groups, there are 3 subregional economic entities to which some of our member countries have joined.
This is the case of Libya, which since 2015 has been a member of the Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa SA; Tunisia, which is about to follow suit, will soon be too. You also have the Community of Sahel-Saharan States (CEN-SAD) created in Tripoli in 1998 and of which all the Maghreb states are members, with the exception of Algeria. By contrast, all 5 Maghreb states are members of the Greater Arab Free Trade Area (GZALE). Outside the African continent, Maghreb countries such as Tunisia, Algeria and Morocco have agreements with the European Union.
This indicates that ECOWAS membership, which has been a focus of attention in recent times, may constitute, rather than a threat, additional opportunities for the Maghreb countries and for sub-Saharan Africa. Sub-Saharan Africa is indeed a large market in full expansion, and an area with strong economic growth. The Maghreb, which aspires to vertical development both towards Europe and Africa, can not afford the luxury of being confined to its zone and depriving itself of real potential for development.
I would simply like to assure that if Morocco and Mauritania have signed agreements with ECOWAS and Tunisia enjoys observer status, this in no way hinders efforts to build a competitive and integrated Maghreb economic zone. . In contact with other groups, which themselves have regional integration policies, the Maghreb countries offer themselves additional prospects in terms of business opportunities and edification on the instruments of integration.
