Morocco craves foreign investment

[razrif]

Morocco wants to double foreign investment to 5bn euros (£3.5bn; $6bn) a year to boost economic growth, a top government official has said.

Speaking to the Reuters news agency, Hassan Bernoussi, of the government's Investment Department, said Morocco would also open up key industries.

Investment is up fivefold over the past decade and is expected to reach 3.5bn euros this year.

But that is not enough for the state to hit its 7% economic growth-rate target.

Better looking

Morocco posted an average growth rate of 4.6% between 2001 and 2004, and 1.8% in 2005. It is forecast at 5.4% for this year.

However, analysts said that Morocco needed to post growth of 6% in order to create enough jobs to cut an urban unemployment level of about 19%, as well as to finance large-scale infrastructure projects such as upgrading roads and ports.

Morocco has been undertaking economic reforms, including looking at ways of cutting its debt and budget deficit, and this has been a key factor in attracting foreign firms, Mr Bernoussi told Reuters.

Investors, both foreign and domestic, were keen on power, telecommunications, and utility companies once markets were opened up, he explained.

Morocco also has agreements with tourism and real estate firms.

As well as the internal changes, Morocco has looked abroad, striking free trade deals with the European Union and US.

"These free-trade accords made Morocco more attractive for foreign investors, because the country becomes a platform for exports to foreign markets," Mr Bernoussi said.

[Amazigh Man]

sounds good..

but I am sure that 95% of the those potential investments will go to cherifian cities like Casa Rabat Salé and Fez...

[Ghazala]

Of course the investment goes to big cities. That way it generates more money. You're not going to create economic growth by ploughing money into small towns with poor prospects. Shame for smaller towns but that's the way the cookie crumbles.

[Larache4eva]

lol even when ther r international festivals or conferences in big cities ( agadir, casa, rabat, marakkech...) they clean the place ther picking up all the homeless insanes and alcoholists, and let them off in morocco grabages (Larache....etc)...then comes the marrakechy people tell me eeew ur town sucks, not knwing that the holy cities swee their trash off in here

[Ghazala]

That's charming. Are you saying LArache is full of Insanes & homelesses?

[Larache4eva]

when i hear in news that a conference is soon to be hosted in the holy cities i know i would see new insanes' faces in town, they drive them in some big van here...so that the holy cities can be clean ...etc

any way yeah sometimes there r some new ones here

[Ghazala]

Tell 2M. They love to do shows about social problems. They will send that guy down who has 100DH to spend on a day in your town