Arms race: Morocco increases its Defense budget by 18% for 2026

According to the International Monetary Fund (IMF), the kingdom’s GDP is expected to record an increase of 4.4%, a trend that should continue in the coming years. At the same time, the kingdom has announced a significant increase in its military spending to modernize its army and consolidate its status as a regional power in the face of its eternal rival, Algeria. According to official sources, Morocco plans to increase its defense budget by nearly a fifth next year. The bill presented to Parliament last Monday allocates 157 billion dirhams ($17.1 billion) to defense in 2026, an 18% increase over the previous year. This amount represents about 10% of the kingdom’s GDP, but the actual expenditures for the military sector are estimated between 4 and 5% of GDP. The latest data show 4.2%, double that of Spain.

The kingdom has significantly strengthened its military capabilities over the past decade. Spending has increased every year for the past seven years, up nearly 40% from the 96.7 billion dirhams ($10.4 billion) in 2019. A recent report from the International Institute for Strategic Studies, an American think tank, confirms this sharp increase in Moroccan defense spending. The country has also diversified its arms suppliers by signing agreements with China, India, Turkey, Brazil and Pakistan, thus reducing its dependence on Western countries. Analysts explain that tensions with Algeria and regional security threats have pushed Morocco to develop its national military production, even if the country is still far from the technological frontier to manufacture weapons as sophisticated as those imported from the great powers.

The Department of International Affairs at the University of Navarre already pointed out last year that Morocco had modernized its army to make it one of the most advanced in Africa. Both Algeria and Morocco are increasing their already significant military budgets, fueling fears of an arms race in the region. The main point of friction remains the Sahara. Morocco considers this former Spanish colony as an integral part of its territory, while Algeria is an unconditional ally of the Polisario Front. For Rabat, Algeria uses this issue to weaken its territorial integrity, while Algiers sees it as a principle of self-determination of peoples. To this is added a struggle for regional leadership. Morocco has drawn closer to the Western powers and Israel, while Algeria maintains links with Russia and the non-aligned movement. One must not forget the closure of land borders since 1994 and the diplomatic rupture of 2021.