Doha – Morocco registered 78,244 new businesses in the first ten months of 2024, according to data released by the Moroccan Office of Industrial and Commercial Property (OMPIC).
The figures show that 56,292 of these registrations were legal entities, while 21,952 were individual enterprises.
The commercial sector dominated new business creation, representing 34.73% of all new enterprises, followed by construction and real estate activities at 19.36%.
Service industries claimed the third position at 18.47%, while transportation, manufacturing, and hospitality sectors accounted for 8.07%, 7.3%, and 5.63% respectively.
The IT sector, financial services, and agriculture showed more modest shares at 2.79%, 1.99%, and 1.67%.
Regional distribution data reveals Casablanca-Settat leading with 24,571 new businesses, followed by Tanger-Tetouan-Al Hoceima with 11,328, and Rabat-Sale-Kenitra with 9,121.
Marrakech-Safi registered 8,875 new enterprises, while other regions such as Fez-Meknes and Souss-Massa recorded 5,409 and 5,323 respectively.
Limited liability companies (SARL) emerged as the preferred legal structure, comprising 64.9% of new businesses, while single-member limited liability companies (SARLAU) represented 34.5%.
Public limited companies (SA) and branch offices accounted for just 0.3% and 0.1% respectively.
Challenges remain
However, these figures emerge against a backdrop of significant challenges facing Moroccan businesses.
Recent data from the Moroccan Observatory of Micro, Small, and Medium Enterprises (MSMes) indicates that only 15% of businesses in the country are led by women, a figure that has remained stagnant since 2020.
Women-led enterprises face particular challenges in accessing bank credit, with only 14.6% securing bank loans.
The sustainability of new businesses also remains a concern, with only 53% surviving beyond their first five years, according to a joint report by the World Bank and the Moroccan Observatory of MSMes.
The situation is projected to worsen, with Allianz Trade forecasting a 13% increase in business insolvencies for 2024 and an additional 8% rise in 2025.
Their report projects insolvency cases to reach 16,100 in 2024, marking a 101% increase compared to the 2016-2019 average.
The majority of formal enterprises in Morocco remain small, with businesses operating for less than a decade averaging fewer than 10 employees.
Even mature companies with over ten years of operation maintain relatively modest sizes, averaging only 26 employees.
Read also: Over 61,000 New Businesses Created in Morocco by August 2024
