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OPINION

Immigration and DNA Testing: Desperate France Uses Desperate Measures

If the French government is given the green light to use DNA testing for immigrants, then France would follow a shameful path with potentially dangerous ethical implications. The Sarkozy government is proposing the novel idea of administering DNA testing to foreign nationals seeking to join their relatives already living in France. Thus, family reunification, a basic universal human right, which is virtually the only way to immigrate these days, will be jeopardized at its core, all while institutionalized unethical information gathering will reach new heights. What makes this law even more shameful is that it only targets immigrants from specific origins, the most vulnerable ones. Read the opinion here.

TOPICS

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201st. issue - September 25, 2007

Markets
Boeing vs. Airbus:
The Libyan Battleground

Years of embargo led to a major degradation of the Libyan civil aviation infrastructure. But with its reintroduction into the global economic system, competition for the modernization of the Libyan fleet is already heating up. In June of 2007, the two Libyan carriers ordered 26 aircraft, confirming the vast potential of the Libyan market. Essentially benefiting the European giant Airbus, Libyan Airlines ordered 15 units, of which four are the long-haul carriers A350-800 XWB, four A330-200 and seven A320. Afriqiyah Airways ordered 11 units, comprised of six A350, four A350 and three A330 under specific option terms. [read here]

Markets
French Automakers Seek More Relocation to the Maghreb for Manufacturing and Servicing

French automakers and their international partners are contemplating the establishment of new facilities to lower-cost manufacturing sites in North Africa and elsewhere. Renault and its Japanese partner Nissan have agreed to build a €600 million plant in Tangier, Morocco. Meanwhile Peugeot is considering moving one of its customer service centers to Tunisia. [read here]

Politics/Security
What Role for France in the Mediterranean?

Led by president Nicola Sarkozy, a few senior French strategists have embarked on the daunting task of convincing the countries of the Mediterranean basin to form yet another regional union. It’s a good idea but it is also one that has many more skeptics than believers. Even the powerful European Union sees this initiative as a distraction from the broader and more urgent European construction and is not likely to fully endorse it. [read here]

Corporate Profile
Risma Morocco

Risma has won the invitation to tender regarding the acquisition of Emirotel, the company which owns Hilton Hotel located in Moroccan capital Rabat at a price of DH 736 million. Hilton Hotel is located in the centre of Rabat in an area of 9 ha (1 hectare = 10,000 Sq.m or about 2.5 acres). This 5-stars hotel includes 269 rooms, 6 restaurants, 2,065 sq m of meeting rooms, a green park and a free land bank of 3 ha. [read here]

Politics/Government
Abbas El-Fassi to Form New Government in Morocco

The Moroccan King, Mohammed the sixth, picked Abbas El-Fassi as the new Prime Minister. El Fassi is the head of the Istiqlal party, a nationalist political organization that has won the highest number of seats (52) in parliament, following the legislative elections that took place September 7, 2007. Rival Islamist PJD, which was expected to win the first stop, took in 46 seats, according the Moroccan election authorities. The parliament has 325 seats. [read here]

Infrastructure
Algeria’s East-West Highway and its Environmental Impact

The construction of the Algerian East-West highway is subject of an intense debate between the environmentalists and proponents of the project as it crosses the natural biosphere park of El-Qala in eastern Algeria. Everyday the conflict between the two has been progressively edging up to the point where there is some uncertainty as to its eastern trajectory. For the proponents, the economic arguments that are put forward involve fast delivery time and low cost. Environmentalists argue that nature is irreplaceable and the value of the natural park cannot be degraded and must be protected, given the national and international laws. [read here]

Infrastructure
Will Morocco Have its High-Speed Train on the Horizon?

It has been four years since the idea to build a high-speed train (HST) service came to public attention. In just four years, the idea went a long way and is nearing the implementation phase. Although in 2003 the project was much more prudent, with the proposed construction of a single track, the Moroccans are exploring the idea of a much bigger network, stretching over 1,500 kilometers. But construction will not be completed overnight. At an estimated cost of MAD 70 million per kilometer of track (nearly $9 million), based on today’s value of the dirham, it will take two decades before the first HST would be launched. This means Morocco will have to invest a massive MAD 100 billion, and that’s the low end of the potential spending range. [read here]

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