The Indian defense industry is increasingly interested in Morocco as a base for deployment in Africa. After Tata, which is to produce WhAP 8x8 land combat vehicles in the Kingdom, other Indian companies could follow suit. After signing an agreement in September with the TATA group, the entire Indian military industry is now looking to set up operations in Morocco, reports an Indian media outlet on Sunday, December 15. India's military industry is interested in making Morocco its «gateway to Africa». Morocco offers an «ideal environment» for Indian companies, thanks to its «zero bureaucracy and profitability for Indian defense companies», the same source revealed, citing a statement by Abdeltif Loudiyi, Minister Delegate in charge of National Defense Administration, at the India-Morocco Defense Industry Seminar, held in Rabat on December 9 and 10. The Minister pointed out that «Morocco adopted (in August 2020) a new legal framework to manage the defense industry activity». Additionally, the Indian side aims to take advantage of the free trade agreements (FTAs) that the kingdom has concluded with partners in Europe, Africa, and the United States, notes the Indian media. «The seminar provided an opportunity to understand Morocco's specific defense needs, including armored personnel carriers and other critical assets, and to provide tailor-made solutions through Indian expertise in defense equipment manufacturing to support its vision of modernizing the sector», said an Indian official. Morocco to build a military industry The same applies to the Society of Indian Defence Manufacturers, according to the same source. «Morocco's representatives emphasized the country's investor-friendly climate, with free trade zones, notably the Atlantic Free Zone, and incentives for foreign investment», it wrote on X. It is worth noting that on September 27 and 28, 2018, Minister Loudiyi made a working visit to India, marked by the signing of two memorandums. The first defines a general framework for cooperation in the field of cybersecurity between the National Defense Administration and its Indian counterpart. The second establishes cooperation in the field of space activities between the Indian Space Research Organization and the Royal Centre for Remote Sensing and the Royal Centre for Space Studies and Research, both under the aegis of the Moroccan Department of Defense. The National Defense Administration and Tata Advanced Systems Limited (TASL), a subsidiary of the international conglomerate Tata Group, signed a strategic partnership agreement on September 22 for the local production of the WhAP 8x8 land combat vehicle at the TATA Advanced Systems Maroc (TASM) plant.
