Country Profile
From The Report: Morocco 2015
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Situated on the western tip of North Africa, Morocco – also known by its ancient name Al Maghreb, meaning “the West” in Arabic – contains a mix of indigenous Berber, Arab, African and European influences. Most of its 33m people live near the northern plains and cities along the Atlantic coast and speak Arabic, French or one of the varieties of Berber. As the region’s only monarchy, the kingdom has fashioned its rich cultural heritage into a tolerant state, whose pragmatic and inclusive approach to social and economic development has allowed it to sidestep the instability that has shaken some of its neighbours in recent years. A spate of modest political and governmental reforms, alongside a rapidly improving business environment, has allowed the country to expand its influence both in the Mediterranean basin and more broadly on the African continent.

This chapter contains viewpoints from His Majesty King Mohammed VI and Joe Biden, US Vice-President; and interviews with Abdel-Ilah Benkiran, Head of Government; and Jack Lang, former French Minister of Culture and President of the Arab World Institute.

Articles from this Chapter

Overview

Morocco continues to mix diverse cultures and modernise as a state
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Owing its ancient name to its geographic location, Morocco, also known as Al Maghreb, meaning “the West” in Arabic, boasts a mix of indigenous Berber, Arab, African and European influences. Situated on the western tip of North Africa and the region’s only monarchy, the kingdom has been able to fashion its rich cultural heritage into a tolerant state. A comparatively pragmatic and inclusive approach to social and economic development has allowed it to sidestep the instability that has shaken…

Overview

Morocco expands its political reforms and increases participation
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North Africa has undergone some turbulent times over the past four years, but among all of the regime changes and revolutions, Morocco has maintained an impressive level of stability. The kingdom has deliberately cultivated a reputation as one of the most moderate and tolerant countries in the region, aided in part by reforms enacted under King Mohammed VI, who ascended to the throne in 1999. Over the past 16 years, measures to improve domestic governance, strengthen rural development, liberalise…

Viewpoint

His Majesty King Mohammed VI: Viewpoint
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What is Morocco’s position today? In which category can we classify the national economy? Can we consider it a competitive country or rank it among other emerging countries? Everyone knows there is no specific model for emerging countries. Each country follows its own development path according to the human, economic and natural resources available, and depending on its civilisation and the challenges it has to meet. However, there are standards and assets required to be part of this group…

Interview

Abdel-Ilah Benkiran, Head of Government: Interview
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Interview: Abdel-Ilah Benkiran How have oil prices affected the subsidy reforms? ABDEL-LLAH BENKIRAN: At the start of this government’s term, Morocco’s compensation fund amounted to Dh57bn (€5bn), or nearly 26% of the national budget a considerable amount for a country with revenues of less than Dh220bn (€19.6bn). We were firmly convinced that this situation is unsustainable and had no guarantee that the fund’s expenses were not going to increase even more. Thus, we chose a progressive…

Analysis

Morocco developing stronger international diplomatic partnerships
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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) – in part a result in the North African kingdom’s trade strategy, which has sought stronger…

Viewpoint

Joe Biden, US Vice-President: Viewpoint
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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, for example, in a race to create tens of millions of jobs, just to break even, as the demographic…

Interview

Jack Lang, Former French Minister of Culture; and President, the Arab World Institute (AWI): Interview
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Interview: Jack Lang How should Morocco’s role in the region evolve, and what strengths can it leverage in this regard? JACK LANG: Morocco is very active in the Mediterranean, as its strategic foothold in the region, historical links with Europe, and political and economic stability make the kingdom a powerful and privileged regional partner. The country has the potential to be the link for a new Europe-Mediterranean-Africa axis, as well as an African hub for French and European companies. While…

Analysis

Political participation increases in Morocco
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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 currently under way that seek to build upon some of the initial steps taken previously. The idea…