Morocco’s Economic Growth Potential Hindered by Private Sector Challenges, World Bank Reports

According to the institution, Morocco has strong growth potential but is not getting out of it. The impact of the private sector on national economic development is not yet visible, given the many reforms and initiatives undertaken by the Kingdom in this regard, reports Hespress, citing the report in question.

In its report called "Private Sector Diagnostic", the World Bank has called on the private sector in the Kingdom to "make more efforts in terms of supporting national skills, particularly through the training they follow, but also in terms of access to employment". The global institution noted, however, "disparities between the level of skills and the reality of the labor market".

In the same report, the World Bank criticizes the development model adopted by Morocco. According to it, this model is not viable in relation to the reality on the market. In detail, the institution notes that the realization rate of the initiated investments is different from the reality on the ground, despite its high level, compared to the average of 34% of national GDP. Worse, the World Bank notes that employability and growth hardly benefit this model, which, according to it, must be reformed.

In material or human terms, the Kingdom ranks among the countries with high growth potential, without taking off economically. And yet, the countries that have succeeded there have managed to achieve annual GDP per capita growth rates of over 4%, unlike Morocco (2.9% between 2000 and 2017, and only 1.6% between 1990 and 2000). Particular emphasis has been placed on supporting the private sector, a major contributor to economic growth, particularly through Foreign Direct Investment (FDI).

Morocco would also benefit from reducing disparities in the market conditions faced by companies. In the same vein, the Kingdom has an interest in initiating reforms that offer the same opportunities to the different economic actors, to avoid frustrations. The same report also calls for the overhaul of the employment sector, which must work to reduce the unemployment rate, still far from the average. Morocco must stop offering training that is not adequate. Instead, it should encourage young people, in their orientations, to aim more at the professional environment.