By Mohamed ELKADAOUI
Morocco is becoming one of the most inviting destinations for multiple large international investment companies. This is due to the Moroccan government’s efforts which managed to host many foreign investors from all over the world in the last years. The recent Middle-east turmoil, which seems to be getting more and more complicated, pushed more large companies to leave the Middle East region to more stable and attractive destinations, especially to Morocco, for their investments.
Aware of the importance of foreign investments for economic growth, Morocco has offered a suitable atmosphere for investors. The kingdom has launched a large program of reformations to support competence and transparency. The program aims at easing administrative procedures for enterprises, empowering the system of business rights and developing financial markets besides several encouraging objectives.
On other hand, the stable socio-political environment, the growing economy and the unique strategic location makes Morocco a promising destination for international investors. The strategic location facilitates the international business movements to Morocco, which makes it an inviting business destination. Further, the Tanger-Med port, situated just 10 km from Europe, is one of the most lively ports in Africa, with capacity of 8 millions containers.
The Kingdom of Morocco has recently witnessed major international investments including the largest automotive industry in Africa. Recently, it has inaugurated the establishment of the French car manufacturer Renault with a production capacity of 400,000 vehicles per year. Besides Renault, big international companies including DELL, DELPHI, ACCIONA and Bombardier, the third largest airplane manufacturer in the world after Airbus and Boeing, have undertaken vast investments in Morocco. The Middle East turmoil pushed giant oil companies to change their destinations to Morocco. Chevron one of the largest oil companies in the US and the British Fastnet have moved to Morocco within the last one year.
Gulf investments in Morocco have extremely raised in recent years, especially at the level of tourism. Ahmad Najm, the Secretary-General of the Commercial Arbitration Centre of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC), stated that despite the disturbances all over the world, especially in the Arab region, Morocco is one of the most appropriate destinations for investments in many fields.
Spain’s proximity to Morocco and its historical economic relations with the kingdom, which has been promoted lately with the visit of the Spanish King, make it, next to France, one of the top strategic investment partners with Morocco. The Spanish Ambassador in Rabat, Alberto Navarro, affirmed recently that Morocco has high-level economic and political qualifications in addition to its unique and crucial geo-strategic location in the world.
Major Asian countries, such as China, express their desire to expand their investments in Morocco. Weeks ago, the Chinese ambassador to Morocco stated that his country’s investments in Morocco reached 160 million dollars and that China expects to raise the rate of its investments in Morocco. The Chinese diplomat affirmed that China is planning to join automative industry in Morocco not just by exporting but aloso by manfacturing vehicles.
Currently, Morocco, under the wise leadership of HM king Mohamed VI, is in the process of of expanding its partnership with more African nations within framework of south-south cooperation. This further will promote the kingdom’s economic position especially the level of the Maghreb.
To conclude, Morocco is strongly expected to be one of the busiest business hubs in North Africa, thanks to its sustainable efforts especially at the level of promoting political stability and strong economic initiatives. This has been affirmed by a report by the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD), in which the Moroccan economy is considered as the strongest one in North Africa. The report also points out that the Moroccan economy has become very attractive for foreign investments.
