Marrakech- Funds from the countries of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) as foreign direct investment are steadily increasing, as well as remittances from Moroccans working in the Gulf, according to Moroccan newspaper l’Economiste.
In 2013, revenues from the Gulf exceeded 25 billion dirhams and accounted for 15% of foreign direct investment (FDI) received by Morocco.
In over a decade, trade between Morocco and GCC has increased in value to 29 billion dirhams. The value of Moroccan exports to the GCC reached 1.2 billion dirhams in 2013, with a deficit of 26.38 billion dirhams caused by increased oil prices.
Moroccans working in the GCC sent home 9 billion dirhams and donations from the Gulf countries amounted to 6.3 billion dirhams last year, nearly two-thirds of the total funds received as donations by Morocco. Tourism receipts from the Gulf region stood at 3.7 billion dirhams in 2013.
A conference in Bahrain in early September called for an Arab Marshall Plan to avoid the unrest seen in Syria and Iraq, Agence France Press (AFP) reported. Youth unemployment and despair have been targeted as significant factors in a young person’s decision to join terror organizations such as Al Qaeda and ISIS.
According to AFP, Ibrahim Dabdoub, deputy chairman of the International Bank of Qatar, called for a Marshall Plan (a post-World War II initiative to rebuild Germany) by rich Arab countries. Dabdoub stated that this plan would require £100 billion for development plans over the next five years.
The GCC countries are economically strong, having earned trillions of dollars in oil sales over the last few years. It is a prudent strategy for Morocco to forge business interests and agreements with the economically powerful GCC states, particularly Saudi Arabia and Qatar.
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