SICPA Morocco inaugurates its highly secure tax stamps coding centre
SICPA Morocco inaugurated today its new regional coding centre for highly secure tax stamps in the industrial zone of Sidi Bernoussi in Casablanca, in the presence of Mrs. Kenza El Alaoui, Director General at the Ministry of Industry and Trade, Mr. Nabil Lakhdar, Director General of the Customs Administration, and Mr. Said Mouline, Director General of the Moroccan Agency for Energy Efficiency.
A very high level of expertise
This ultra-modern industrial tool, operational since May 2021, prints highly secure unique codes on tax stamps, combining physical security elements and cutting-edge digital technologies, a unique expertise specific to SICPA. It uses the most advanced technologies from SICPA's Centres of Excellence, one of which is located in Casablanca, in the Tour CFC.
The stamps are used to mark alcoholic beverages, cigarettes, beers, soft drinks, nectars and mineral waters, both domestic and imported, as part of the SAMID system (Système Automatisé de Marquage Intégré en Douane), in order to secure the collection of taxes and prevent fraud and smuggling.
Morocco, pioneer of modern traceability systems and hub for Africa
The coding centre's machinery allows for the annual coding of approximately 3.2 billion stamps for several African countries in addition to Morocco. Further investments are planned to provide, in a second phase, additional coding capacity of up to 5 billion stamps per year.
As the first African country to have adopted a modern traceability system on the continent with SICPA’s solution, Morocco has become a model for many African countries, as shown by regular visits from foreign administrations, and now plays the role of African hub for SICPA.
In his speech, Eric Besson, President of SICPA Morocco, stressed that "In Morocco, SICPA's roots are now deep. In terms of traceability, Morocco was a pioneer. It remains a reference, a model".
This centre further strengthens the local presence of SICPA Morocco, which now has more than 160 local employees in the country, and thus contributes to the transfer of skills and know-how between the Swiss and Moroccan teams.
Improving energy efficiency
Willing to reduce the impact of its operations on the environment and aware of Morocco's leadership in the fight against climate change, SICPA Morocco signed an agreement with the Moroccan Agency for Energy Efficiency, in the presence of its General Manager Mr. Said Mouline, regarding the installation of solar panels at the site of Ain Sebaa Bernoussi.
