Morocco is counting on a
"record"
public investment
of 245 billion dirhams, or more than 23 billion euros, to get its economy back on its feet, severely shaken by the health crisis, the Minister of the Economy said on Tuesday.
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The Maghreb country plans
"the mobilization of a public investment of 245 billion dirhams, a record figure, crucial to restart the economy,"
said Minister Nadia Fettah Alaoui at a press conference on the project 2022 Finance Law (PLF). The PLF, presented Monday before Parliament, projects an acceleration of growth of 5.2% in 2021, before a slowdown to 3.2% in 2022. More optimistic, the IMF forecasts a growth rate of 5.7% for Morocco in 2021, which would make it the most dynamic economy in the Maghreb (+ 3.4% for Algeria and + 3% for Tunisia). In 2020, the Cherifian kingdom had been faced with its worst recession (-7%) in a quarter of a century due to the effects of the Covid-19 pandemic.
In the social field - the priority announced by the new government resulting from the legislative elections in September - the PLF aims to create 250,000 direct jobs over the next two years, said Ms. Fettah Alaoui, without further details.
Morocco's unemployment rate has worsened this year to nearly 13%, according to recent central bank estimates.
First budget bill
This is the first finance bill proposed by the government of businessman Aziz Akhannouch, appointed by King Mohammed VI in early October to redress a socio-economic situation damaged by the health crisis, in particular the tourism sector.
"Our priority is to strengthen the social state in the sectors of health, education and employment, and to move forward in the project of generalization of social protection"
, underlined the Minister of Finance.
The PLF provides for a slight increase in the budgets for Health (+350 million euros) and Education (480 million EUR), two sectors criticized by Moroccans for their serious deficiencies.
The bill also aspires to reduce the budget deficit from 6.2% of GDP this year to 5.9% in 2022.