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Dakhla — Morocco’s government spokesman Mustafa Baitas sparked controversy this week when he directly blamed the country’s rising unemployment rates on the lack of rainfall and years of drought.
Speaking during a TV show on Morocco’s state-owned Al Aoula Channel, the minister pointed to the agricultural sector’s weak performance, claiming it failed to generate enough output to offset losses from harsh climate conditions.
Baitas went on to paint a picture of cautious optimism for the future. “A rainy year” would have allowed Morocco to achieve economic growth exceeding 6%, he argued.
The country’s hopes, he said, now rest on improved rainfall next year, which would help “relieve pressure” on the job market.
Shifting blame to the weather
The minister’s statement raises serious questions about the government’s economic strategy to address vital sector-related problems.
While the grim state of the climate has certainly affected Morocco’s agriculture, blaming unemployment entirely on rainfall conveniently dodges deeper structural issues in Morocco’s economy.
The spokesman’s logic suggests the government considers itself powerless against weather patterns rather than actively addressing job creation through policy reforms, industrial diversification, or investment in sectors less vulnerable to drought.
Baitas offered no concrete plans for reducing unemployment beyond hoping for better weather — a strategy that leaves millions of job seekers at the mercy of rainfall patterns.
Damage control on salary gaffe
The minister also used his television appearance to walk back an earlier mistake that generated widespread controversy. During a previous interview on the 2M Channel, Baitas had claimed the minimum wage in the public sector stands at MAD 10,000 ($1,000).
He now admits this was simply a “slip of the tongue.”
Baitas stressed he actually meant to refer to the “average wage” rather than the minimum wage — a significant difference that suggests either confusion about basic economic facts or an attempt to paint a rosier picture of public sector compensation.
Baitas tried to minimize what many have interpreted as a dismissive and arrogant comment with a popular Moroccan saying: “The minaret fell; hang the barber.” The saying essentially means that mistakes happen easily and spread quickly.
But the gaffe suggests a troubling disconnect between government officials and economic realities facing ordinary Moroccans.
The dual missteps — blaming unemployment on weather while fumbling basic wage statistics — paint a picture of a government more focused on deflecting criticism than confronting the country’s economic challenges head-on.
