Ford Motor Company, a leading automobile manufacturer, has expanded its operations in North Africa with a new regional sales office in Casablanca and a purchasing office in Tangier, Morocco.

Ford has plans to introduce seven new vehicles to North Africa this year and will more than double the amount of parts it purchases from North African-based suppliers, said a statement from the company.

The growing automotive supplier network in North Africa, primarily in Morocco, will supply parts to Ford’s assembly plant in Valencia, Spain, among other operations, it added.

Morocco is the best-selling market for Ford in North Africa. Ford has sold 3,400 vehicles so far this year in Morocco, an increase of 26 per cent compared to January to April 2014.  Ford expects its sales growth in 2015 to continue to outpace the industry growth rate of 11 per cent, it further stated.

Jim Benintende, president of Ford’s Middle East and Africa (MEA), said: “Morocco is a great place to do business.

“Morocco has a very skilled and motivated workforce, a growing automotive supplier ecosystem, access to ports, free and fair trade agreements and a very pro-business mindset. Ford is delighted to partner with Morocco to expand our operations in North Africa,” he said.

Mamoune Bouhdoud, minister delegate to the Minister of Industry, Trade, Investment and Digital Economy, said: “We are confident that Morocco will benefit greatly from the economic impact of Ford’s presence.

“Morocco has great infrastructure, a pro-business mindset, a highly trained workforce, an automotive supply base, a strategic positioning and a challenging industrial strategy. All these are great assets that are advocating for a more ambitious win-win partnership with Ford,” he added. – TradeArabia News Service