Gen J and the Université Privée de Fès Join Forces to Advance Morocco’s Innovation Nation Ambition

Morocco’s innovation ecosystem has gained a new alliance. The Gen J Foundation has signed a strategic partnership with the Université Privée de Fès (UPF), a convention concluded at the end of April on the sidelines of the Semaine des Métiers de l’Ingénieur, held from April 25 to 30 on the university’s Fès campus. The agreement marks a new step in the foundation’s ambition to help position Morocco as an Innovation Nation, by strengthening the links between education, research and innovation across the country.

From Awareness to Execution

Beyond declarations of intent, the partnership is designed to be operational. Starting in 2026, it will translate into a set of concrete actions aimed at reinforcing innovation capacity within both the academic and economic ecosystems. These include the deployment of certifying training programs led by the Gen J Foundation within UPF, the launch of innovation support schemes for students, doctoral candidates, professionals and companies, the joint production of studies, content and strategic recommendations, and the structuring of collaborative innovation mechanisms between universities and businesses. The shared objective is clear: to move from raising awareness to delivering measurable, impact driven results.

A University Anchored in Its Ecosystem

For UPF, the partnership consolidates a strategy already in motion. Through KUB789, its incubation and innovation center, the university supports its talents at every stage, from training to execution. Mohammed Aziz Lahlou, President of UPF, underlined the complementarity of the two institutions’ missions, noting that the collaboration aims to contribute actively to an integrated innovation ecosystem by developing student skills, valorizing research, encouraging innovative projects and bringing the academic world closer to economic players. He added that the partnership will strengthen the university’s commitment to entrepreneurship and innovation as drivers of employability and wealth creation.

Building, Not Decreeing, an Innovation Economy

On the foundation’s side, the conviction is equally firm. Tarik Haddi, President of the Gen J Foundation, stated that the transformation toward an innovation economy cannot be decreed but must be built through the convergence of talents, institutions and ecosystems, in Morocco and internationally, with UPF acting at the heart of education and research. Dr Réda Taleb, Vice President of the foundation and CEO of Officium, expanded on this vision, arguing that making Morocco an Innovation Nation requires going beyond a strictly technological reading of innovation. The challenge, in his view, is cultural, economic and institutional: creating the conditions for ideas to circulate more freely between universities, companies, researchers, entrepreneurs and regions, while training a new generation able to innovate with method, pragmatism and impact.

What It Means for Morocco

By mobilizing academic, economic and institutional actors at home and abroad, the Gen J and UPF alliance reflects a broader movement within the Kingdom: the structuring of a national innovation ecosystem that is more agile, more connected and more oriented toward tangible outcomes. For Morocco’s students, entrepreneurs and businesses, it is a signal that the bridge between the lecture hall and the marketplace is steadily being built.