Moroccan Businesses Remain Underbanked Despite Continuous Efforts

Rabat – Despite a 32% average hike in investments, Morocco’s economic rebound falls short of expectations partly due to constrained access to financing tools for Moroccan businesses, according to Abdellatif Jouahiri, the governor of Bank Al-Maghrib (BAM), the Moroccan central bank.

Due to extensive bank guarantees, Moroccan businesses face significant challenges accessing bank loans needed for growth ventures, Jouahiri pointed out during a meeting last Tuesday with a parliamentary Commission for Financing and Economic Development. 

In addition to constrained access to loans, Small and Medium-Sized businesses had to withstand increasing fees on banking services at the height of COVID-induced economic crisis, the BAM governor explained during the meeting.

Chaired by the commission president, Mohamed Chaouki, the meeting raised a number of issues pertaining to Morocco’s central bank and the overall investment framework in the country.

The meeting focused on access to financing tools for Moroccan businesses and the role of monetary, public policies over the course of the pandemic-induced economic disruptions.

During the meeting, Jouahiri presented the programs and initiatives that BAM has launched to support post-pandemic economic recovery, promote entrepreneurship, and stimulate competitiveness.

The commission members raised a number of questions concerning the recent hike in consumer prices, and its consequences on consumers’ purchasing power in light of the role BAM plays in maintaining price stability.

Jouahri stressed the need for binding efforts between state institutions to increase the growth rate of the national economy, and create jobs in the country.

The meeting between BAM and the Commission for Finance and Economic Development is part of a large-scale plan to strengthen cooperation between state institutions to enhance Morocco’s business climate and mitigate the impact of COVID-19 on the country’s economy.

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