Highlights from our Morocco Covid-19 Response Report

Oxford Business Group has launched the Morocco Covid-19 Response Report in partnership with the Moroccan Agency for the Development of Investment and Exports (Agence Marocaine de Développement des Investissements et des Exportations, AMDIE). The report details how Morocco has navigated the social and economic fallout of the pandemic, and highlights opportunities for growth and investment in a post-pandemic era.

Drastic and swift measures imposed by the Moroccan government, including early border closures, a widespread public information campaign and compulsory masking, have mitigated the spread of the virus. The country imposed a two-zone approach which helped to limit the economic impact on rural and vulnerable populations. Prioritising the health of the population, the Moroccan public and private sector mobilised in an effective joint effort to ramp up Covid-19 testing, achieving 20,000 daily tests and building two dozen laboratories in a few weeks.

On March 15 King Mohammed VI established the Special Fund for the Management and Response to Covid-19 to support the health care system, as well as the country’s social and economic needs. Since then, the fund has received over Dh33bn in contributions from the public and private sectors, development agencies and civil society. The government also provided a number of financial lifelines to businesses and individuals.

While the impact of Covid-19 on Morocco’s economy has been significant, the crisis has also demonstrated the flexibility, self-sufficiency, technological capability and strength of the industrial sector. Textile factories were able to pivot rapidly to produce millions of single-use and reusable masks for domestic circulation and export. Meanwhile, many of the producers in the aeronautics industry, faced with continued decreased demand, were able to shift to the manufacture of medical devices, including a locally developed advanced respirator.

The remarkable adaptability across sectors demonstrate the country’s innovative potential, as well as its position as an attractive location for offshoring and nearshoring of production and service provision. This will serve Morocco well, particularly at a time when European companies are looking to re-examine their supply chains and dependence on parts of Asia in the aftermath of the pandemic. Morocco’s position as a regional player in supply chains, with its strategic proximity to Europe, provides an opportunity for further growth in the industrial base and an extension of partnerships with European and US automotive and aeronautical producers.

The Morocco Covid-19 Response Report demonstrates how investment promotion and facilitation agencies, including AMDIE, are capitalising on these developments to ensure a steady flow of foreign direct investment.

The report provides an in-depth analysis of these issues and more, including a detailed overview of the economic impact of the crisis, private sector mobilisation efforts and a socio-economic outlook highlighting key priorities for a robust recovery. In addition, it contains results from a survey of the Moroccan business community, conducted by OBG in June, and interviews with Moulay Hafid Elalamy, the minister of industry, trade, and green and digital economy; and Hicham Boudraa, acting managing director of AMDIE.