Khaldon Azhari

TOKYO: Top-level officials from the Japanese government and business and international organizations attended the online event organized by the Moroccan embassy in Japan to celebrate the adoption of a resolution at the United Nations General Assembly in March calling it International Argan Day.

Speakers, including the United Nations University in Tokyo, gave congratulatory speeches, while Japanese and Moroccan experts introduced an academic perspective and other details on Argan oil.

In his opening remarks, Moroccan Ambassador to Japan Rashad Bouhlal hailed “the excellent quality of the academic and scientific cooperation between Morocco and Japan in particular within the framework of SATREPS program with Tsukuba University aiming at the development and valorization of bio-resources such as Argan tree.”

Hirobumi Nakasone, president of the Japan-Morocco Friendship Parliamentary Union, said, ” On behalf of the Japan-Morocco Parliamentary Friendship League, I would like to extend my heartfelt congratulations to the people of Morocco that May 10th was adopted as International Argan Day at the United Nations General Assembly and that the celebration ceremony will be held today.

This adoption is the result of Morocco’s strong leadership in the protection of biodiversity under the direction of His Majesty King Mohammed VI, Nakasone said.

Japan was also among the supporters of the “UN General Assembly Resolution to set May 10th as International Argan Day” submitted by Morocco.

In recent years, argan oil has become very popular as beauty oil in Japan, especially among women, and with International Argan Day as an opportunity, speakers said they are expecting that the Japanese people will become more interested in Morocco and the relationship between the two countries will deepen.

Japan and Morocco have built excellent relationship over the years, Nakasone stressed. “I would like to pay tribute to Morocco’s development model, which has achieved remarkable economic development.”

UNESCO registered its know-how on Argan as an Intangible Cultural Heritage in 2014 and later recognized by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations as an “agricultural heritage system of importance worldwide” in 2018.

Argan is an important natural resource for trees endemic to Morocco, and Morocco is working to protect it from excessive taking. Argan oil has many uses, including healthcare, gastronomy, and beauty.