Study: 700,000 Moroccan Jobs at Risk by 2030 Due to COVID-19 Impact

McKinsey has combed through eight major world economies, including China, India and the United States. More than 100 million workers - or one in 16 in the eight countries examined - will have to change jobs or face unemployment due to the economic disruption caused by the virus, McKinsey Global Institute anticipates. Regarding Morocco, nearly 700,000 Moroccan workers could lose their jobs by 2030.

However, Covid-19 was accelerating three major employment trends that are likely to remain. These are remote work, e-commerce and automation. Regarding Morocco, this is not the first time that these elements have been the subject of discussions. In 2017, McKinsey had found that more than half of all professional activities in Morocco could be automated in the years to come, the highest rate in Africa.

"The most significant changes are probably occurring in the four activity sectors with relatively high physical proximity scores: on-site customer interaction, leisure and travel, telework, and indoor production and warehousing," the study report states. These services, such as retail and travel, account for more than half of the Moroccan economy. They support about six million workers in the kingdom.

Even if the nature of work in Morocco in the future remains uncertain, there is evidence that remote work and virtual interaction could boost productivity and output across multiple economic sectors. McKinsey Global Institute also points out that Morocco could mitigate the adverse effects of coronavirus on its economy through the modernization of the Mobile network infrastructure. "The support of Moroccan businesses and policymakers will be invaluable in enabling the country’s workers to thrive in a post-Covid economy," the study authors say.