Join on WhatsApp
Join on Telegram
Rabat – Morocco seeks to attract Korean investors in the automotive and aeronautics sectors to address the “missing links” in the country’s value chain.
In a recent interview with The Korea Times, Meryem Kabbadj, export director of the Moroccan Agency for Investment and Export Development (AMDIE), said that Morocco is diversifying its economy to create new opportunities for Korean investors.
During the interview, which took place on the sidelines of the Morocco Now stop in Seoul, Kabbadj noted that Morocco provides competitive advantages in the key aerospace, automotive, agro-industry, textiles, and pharmaceutical sectors.
When describing Morocco’s investment landscape, the director said that investors enjoy “cost competitiveness, good logistics, free-of-duties situation and access to all the support from the government,” adding that there is “a great set of [tax and labor training] incentives that are available to support and help the companies to invest in Morocco.”
The Moroccan automotive industry, for instance, has experienced double-digit growth in the past years, making the country a leading car producer in Africa, with over 250 companies operating in the sector, Kabbadj said.
“Our supply chain is very integrated, very diversified. It comprises exterior parts, interior parts, wiring harnesses, and other components,” she added, before arguing that Morocco’s infrastructure, trained workforce, and stability have been major driving forces for the advancement of the country’s automotive sector.
Read Also: Why ‘Made in Morocco’ Could Be Africa’s Leading Automotive Label
Kabbadj continued to note that the presence of “a stable environment” is required to invest in heavy industries that demand huge investments.
This rule extends to the aeronautics industry where Morocco holds a partnership with the American giant Boeing. However, the Korean expertise in “infrastructure work” in the field provides partnership opportunities between Rabat and Seoul, particularly with regard to advancing the integration of new technologies to decarbonize the local industries and increase their effectiveness.
Some of these cooperation opportunities have already been discussed with the Korea Importers Association (KOIMA), the director said.
“We look forward to strengthening this collaboration. It’s a good dynamic and we feel that there is a good potential to explore in different sectors, either for investment or for trade,” Kabbadj concluded.
As of 2020, Korean exports to Morocco reached $364M, up from $57.5M in 1995. The exports included iron or non-alloy steel, laboratory reagents, and motor vehicles. Meanwhile, Moroccan exports to South Korea settled at $149M and included primarily fresh, chilled, or frozen fish meat as well as textile products.
