Casablanca – King Mohammed VI received the governor of Bank Al-Maghrib, Abdellatif Jouahri, at the royal palace in Rabat on Saturday, June 28, 2014. The governor presented the annual report on the Kingdom’s economy for 2013.
Mr. Jouahri indicated that the national economy achieved satisfactory results in 2013, despite the continuing effects of the global crisis.
Even though the regional and international environment has been quite a challenge for the Moroccon economy, Morocco has been able to achieve in recent years significant progress. Morocco has increased its production and effectiveness with respect to international institutions, agencies and foreign investors.
The year 2013 provided 50,000 fewer jobs in the industry of manufacturing, construction and mining. In contrast, the growth of Gross Domestic Product (GDP), improved from 2.7% to 4.4%, thanks to strong growth in the agricultural sector.
Favorable weather conditions in 2013 increased the profits of agricultural activities 19% compared to the previous year.
While the market value of all final goods and services produced grew only 4.7% in 2013, compared with 5% in 2012 and 6.3% in 2011, the strategic maturity sectors of agriculture, fishing, mining and internal trade continued to develop positively with promising prospects for the future.
The decline of industrial activities, however, caused a rise in unemployment. In the annual report, the rate of jobless citizens climbed to 9.2%, affecting 14% of people in urban areas and 36% of the Moroccan youth.
Mr. Jouahri reported that it was a global trend: “Youth unemployment remains a worrying phenomenon in most developed countries and one of the main consequences of the international crisis.”
Overall, according to the report, whether the Moroccan economy is resilient or not, structural weaknesses, such as the lack of organization, management, and marketing, are responsible for the degradation of the country’s industrial competitiveness.
Aware of these weaknesses, Morocco is facing the challenge of increasing the competitiveness of its economy. Morocco should increase its efforts to apply reforms that aim to improve the business climate, the qualification of the workforce, and resolve the issues of unemployment and trade deficit.
Edited by Elisabeth Myers
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