Agadir – Morocco’s chemical and para-chemical sector generated a turnover of around MAD 200 billion ($21.79 billion) and accounted for nearly 23% of national industrial exports, according to Omar Hejira, Secretary of State to the Minister of Industry and Trade in charge of Foreign Trade.
Speaking at the opening of the fourth International Chemistry Forum, Hejira underlined that Morocco’s chemical and para-chemical industry has become the country’s leading industrial production sector.
Hejira highlighted the sector’s importance in supporting technological, energy, and environmental transitions, recalling the scientific principle of Lavoisier: “Nothing is lost, nothing is created, everything is transformed.” He said this concept reflects the central role of chemistry in adapting to today’s global shifts.
He also pointed to growing pressures linked to supply chain disruptions and rising energy and raw material costs, stressing that stronger industrial integration is now essential to improve resilience and competitiveness.
The sector, he noted, plays a key role in industries such as energy, automotive, pharmaceuticals, advanced materials, as well as emerging battery and energy storage value chains.
“The chemical and para-chemical industry consumes around 26% of the energy used by the industrial sector. Consequently, it is now essential for this sector to place greater emphasis on improving energy efficiency as well as developing renewable energy sources,” Hejira stated.
In this context, Hejira called for a more balanced territorial distribution of industrial investment, noting that 85% of activities in the sector are concentrated in only two regions: Casablanca-Settat and Tangier-Tetouan-Al Hoceima.
He urged greater mobilization of stakeholders to transform ongoing changes into opportunities for value creation and economic growth.
“It is necessary for this sector to expand into other regions as well in order to achieve balanced regional development,” Hejira concluded.
