People everywhere in the world are hungry for economic opportunity. And it’s about a lot more than being able to make money. It’s about your dignity. It’s about respect. It’s about your place in your community. And to be frank, the challenges ahead for all of us are immense, especially in regions with developing economies and rapidly growing populations. In the Middle East and Africa,…
In 2014, a plan to stimulate industrial growth was launched by the minister of industry, trade, investment and digital economy. The new plan is set to run through 2020 and overhauls several areas under the former plan. Along with agriculture, energy and mining, trade and services, industry is one of the main sectors that could accelerate further economic growth. In other emerging countries,…
The issue with savings in Morocco is not that they are weak but that they are not necessarily well oriented. Most savings go to traditional banking products, largely due to a lack of awareness. People are not familiar with saving products. Although we have seen a jump in undertakings for the collective investment of transferable securities (UCITS) in 2015, with more than Dh300bn (€32.64bn)…
Despite the difficult global economic environment, sub-Saharan Africa achieved strong growth of more than 5% in 2014, mainly supported by private and public investments of more than 23% of global GDP. This was accompanied by the expansion of trade, communications and other services. Morocco could not remain unmoved by the strong economic growth potential of the continent. Over the last decade,…
Although the kingdom’s foreign policy choices have always been driven by pragmatism, Morocco has lately become more audacious in the way it projects its international profile. Much of this has been the result of its successful ventures into sub-Saharan Africa, where the country is increasingly becoming an important economic player, as well as closer cooperation with the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC)…
A tradition of centralised rule has typically limited the autonomy of the different administrative subdivisions in Morocco. However, the idea of greater devolution of power to local and regional authorities – to increase local participation in the governance process, to reduce development disparities and to improve transparency – has been gaining traction for decades, and a number of reforms are…
Moroccans benefit from a comparatively extensive social safety net, including a fairly large and generous pension scheme that begins at age 60 for government workers. However, a slowdown in hiring, combined with a demographic bulge that is on the verge of retirement, has combined to stretch the finances of the pension system – a challenge that is facing governments the world over. The Moroccan government,…
In the wake of the international financial crisis and the Arab Spring, Morocco has started running ever-widening fiscal and current account deficits. However, moves to slash energy subsidies, as well as the fall in international oil price, have helped to dramatically reduce both, boosting liquidity and exchange reserves. This has allowed the government to increase its focus on investment. Over the…
A tour of West and Central Africa by Morocco’s head of state in May 2015 has underlined the country’s increasing efforts to strengthen trade and investment ties with its neighbours south of the Sahara. Morocco’s government has sought to expand the country’s economic footprint in Africa in recent years, with King Mohammed VI spearheading a number of trips to West and Central African markets.…
In line with a global trend to increase private sector activity in infrastructure development, Morocco is now host to several major public-private partnership (PPP) projects, including the kingdom’s largest power station and port at Jorf Lasfar and Tanger-Med, respectively. PPP success has left the government keen to boost the number of such projects, and privately financed public infrastructure…
