Mr Briac Deffobis, Head of the Social Development and Territorial Inclusion Section at the Delegation of the European Union (EU) in Morocco, Ms Rania Bikhazi, Director of the International Labour Organization Office in Algiers for Algeria, Libya, Morocco, Mauritania and Tunisia, and Mr Mohamed Hazim Director of the National Labour Market Observatory at the Ministry of Economic Inclusion, Small Business, Employment and Skills, Morocco kicked off the project 'Mainstreaming Employment into Trade and Investment in the Southern Mediterranean Countries' (METI), in the presence of representatives of ministries, social partners, members of the project working group, and the International Labour Organisation (ILO) implementing team. The working group highlighted that trade and investment play an increasingly important role in the Moroccan economy and are the main drivers of economic growth, job creation and sustainable development. The project will assist Morocco in designing its trade and investment policies in a strategic way to support the development of productive sectors, including SMEs, while creating much-needed quality jobs, especially for women and youth.