Rabat – A new report from the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI) said that Morocco’s military spending grew by 3.2% to $5.4 billion in 2021, compared to 2020.
Military expenditure in Africa increased by 1.2% last year, compared to the previous year, to an estimated $39.7 billion.
In 2021, North African military expenditure totalled $19.6 billion, 1.7% lower than in 2020 but 29% higher than in 2012.
Morocco and Algeria are among the countries that have spent the most on weapons on the African continent over the past decade, the report noted.
“The long-standing tensions between North Africa’s two biggest spenders, Algeria and Morocco, worsened in 2021,” SIPRI said.
The institute highlighted that Algeria’s military spending decreased by 6.1% last year to $9.1 billion.
Morocco is one of ten countries in MENA that allocates the highest amount of its gross domestic (GDP) product to military spending.
In 2021 Morocco allocated 4.2% of its GDP to military spending, while Algeria allocated 5.6%.
World military expenditure surpassed $2 trillion for the first time in 2021, reaching $2.1 trillion. Global spending in 2021 was 0.7% higher than in 2020 and 12 % higher than in 2012.
The five largest military spenders in 2021 were the US, China, India, the UK, and Russia, which together accounted for 62% of world military spending. The USA and China alone accounted for 52%.
Morocco’s military spending reached $4.8 billion in 2020, an increase of 29% compared to 2019 and 54% compared to 2011, representing a 29% share of GDP.
Meanwhile, Algeria’s spending reached $9.7 billion in 2020, a decrease of 3.4% compared to 2019.
Morocco ranked 55th out of 140 countries in terms of military power worldwide this year, according to the 2022 “Global Firepower” ranking.
Regarding combat tank fleet strength by country, Morocco ranks 8th with 3,335 tanks.
The country also comes 30th with 144 rocket projectors, 29th with 3,500 armored vehicles, 16th with 517 self-propelled artillery units, and 44th with 211 pieces of towed artillery.
Last year, SIPRI released a report featuring Morocco among the top 40 largest importers of major arms, ranking 29th out of 40.
Data showed Morocco is among the largest customers of US arms.
Morocco buys 90% of its weapons from the United States, 9.2% from France and 0.3% from the UK.
Read Also: Military: Belgium, US, Morocco To Jointly Develop Defense Center
