Morocco’s Economic, Social, and Environmental Council (CESE) presented on Wednesday its opinion on the impact of the European Union’s Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM) on the North African country’s exports.
The session in Rabat brought together representatives from ministries, public institutions, national and international bodies, civil society, and CESE members – including CESE Secretary General Younes Benakki, Moncef Ziani, chair of the permanent commission on economic affairs and strategic projects, and rapporteur Amine Mounir Alaoui.
CESE President Abdelkader Amara said the opinion was prepared through the Council’s participatory approach – built on consultations with institutional stakeholders, professionals, experts, and international organizations.
He noted that the issue is critical for Morocco’s export industries, since the EU is the country’s top trading partner and the mechanism – due to take effect in early 2026 – will directly impact export competitiveness and companies’ ability to adapt to shifting climate and environmental policies.
Amara added that while CBAM will have broad repercussions on global exports to the EU, Morocco’s direct short-term exposure remains limited. He recalled that Morocco has for years pursued ambitious environmental, energy, and industrial policies designed to build a low-carbon industry, reduce greenhouse gas emissions, and achieve carbon neutrality by 2050.
To prepare exporters, CESE outlined four main recommendations: creating an institutional and operational framework to help companies adjust to CBAM; developing a coherent, gradual national carbon pricing strategy; accelerating implementation of the low-carbon strategy; and strengthening international and regional cooperation to support competitiveness and the transition.
Rapporteur Amine Mounir Alaoui set the context by recalling that CBAM is a central element of the European Green Deal – which targets climate neutrality by 2050 through a range of policies and regulations. He said the mechanism reflects both environmental pressures to push non-EU companies to cut emissions and competitive pressures that require such an adjustment tool.
Alaoui explained that CBAM will apply to carbon-intensive sectors, including iron and steel, aluminum, cement, nitrogen fertilizers, hydrogen, and electricity. For Morocco, he noted, the affected exports account for just 3.7% of total trade with the EU – of which 2.9% comes from fertilizers.
He also pointed to several challenges flagged by CESE – including shortages of qualified human resources and standardized data, strict technical requirements, costly investments for local industry, and delays in rolling out decarbonization projects.
The CESE opinion was unanimously adopted at the Council’s 173rd ordinary session on August 28.
MWN with MAP
