On April 14th, the AmCham and the US Consulate of Morocco introduced the new Business Executive Program (BEP).  Under the provisions of the program, the US Consulate will reserve the first and third Wednesdays of every month for direct employees of AmCham member companies requesting US visas.  The purpose of the voyage must be directly related to the companies' business.  Family members of the interested employee are eligible to apply for B2 visas under the BEP. The AmCham itself will be responsible for the reserving and the scheduling of BEP appointments on the reserved days.

The ultimate goal of the BEP is to promote commerce and communication between Morocco and the US. The BEP will enable Morocco-US business trips for companies that have a limited timeframe in which to organize their travel arrangements. As the barriers between Morocco-US travel are reduced, it is the strong hope of both the AmCham and the US Consulate that trade and business relationships between the two countries will continue to increase at an even faster rate.

The scope of the BEP does not extend beyond that of visa applications. The process of obtaining a visa and entering the US is, for the moment, unchanged. These policies will surely come under examination, particularly in light of the recent visit by Ambassador Michael Kirby on March 2nd, but further changes in the system will continue to proceed on a step-to-step basis. Despite continuing reservations that may exist concerning entrance policy into the US, the BEP stands as a sign of commitment to the improvement of the system, and by itself marks a step in the right direction towards successful commerce between the two countries.

Nearly 60 representatives of the Moroccan business community attended the presentation, which was led by Mary Polley and Miguel Ordonez of the US Consulate. The program's functional inauguration is scheduled for the 22 of April, 2009.