The Economist of the Middle East
Morocco is moving steadily towards making the “blue economy” one of the main pillars for achieving comprehensive development in the country, given the important capabilities and qualifications that the Kingdom possesses in this field.
In order to support Rabat’s efforts in its pursuit of this goal and to support the launch of plans for this sector, the World Bank recently agreed to grant the Kingdom a loan of $350 million.
The World Bank stressed that this loan’s objectives are improving the integrated management of natural resources and strengthening some sectors to promote a blue economy capable of withstanding climate changes in the targeted areas.
The financial institution added that this loan also seeks to encourage job creation and economic growth while improving the sustainability and resilience of natural resources, and food security.
Specialists define the blue economy as the good management of marine resources and their use in a way that ensures the protection of the ecosystem of the seas and oceans. It includes all activities related to the sea, such as the fishing and tourism sector, aquaculture, port and energy activities, seawater desalination, and marine biotechnologies, among other activities.
promising qualifications
Thanks to its waterfront on the Mediterranean and the Atlantic Ocean, which extends over a distance of 3,500 km, Morocco has important opportunities for the development of the blue economy.
Economist Omar El Kettani says that Morocco possesses important qualifications in the field of the blue economy, as it enjoys a strategic geographical location, two sea fronts, and an important fish wealth, especially of pelagic fish, including sardines, which are in high demand among all of social circles.
Al-Katani added, that the Kingdom also enjoys energy resources, as signs began to appear in its seas storing important energy wealth, especially after the discovery of quantities of natural gas, which is expected to be directed to the production of electricity.
In the same context, the economist refers to the electrical interconnection project between Morocco and Britain through the continuous high-voltage current lines under the sea from the south of the Kingdom to Britain, to provide more than 7 million homes with clean and low-cost electricity.
On the other hand, El Kettani believes that the establishment of ports in the south of the Kingdom will contribute to reviving the activities related to the green economy and will have a reflection on the commercial side by linking Africa with Europe, and another on the tourism side by organizing tourist trips via ships linking the Mediterranean and the Atlantic Ocean, which It will create, according to him, a kind of economic boom in the areas through which these trips pass, and contribute to achieving development in coastal areas.
Supporting marine fishing activities
Marine fishing is one of the pillars of the blue economy in Morocco, as the Kingdom has an important fish wealth that can nominate it to occupy leading positions in this field, according to experts. The Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) expects Morocco’s fish production to rise by 18.2 percent by 2030, reaching 1.7 million tons annually.
According to the World Organization, Morocco ranks 13th globally and first in the Arab world in fish production, with an annual total production of 1.43 million tons, while the Moroccan Ministry of Agriculture announced that the national production of fish reached 1.4 million tons in 2021, an increase of 35 percent, achieving A record turnover of 15 billion dirhams.
The marine resources in Morocco consist of more than 500 species, and about 85 percent of the fish are exported to about 100 countries around the world, according to official data.
Ibrahim Al-Battah, Vice President of the South Atlantic Chamber of Fisheries, believes that the blue economy can become a real engine for socio-economic development by encouraging investment and providing tax incentives and administrative incentives to investors, noting that this would create new jobs and accelerate the development of coastal areas in different regions of the Kingdom.
The actor in the marine fishing sector stresses the need to invest in the opportunities offered by the blue economy, and to accompany it with a plan that includes a set of measures aimed at developing the marine fishing sector, pointing out in this context the importance of valuing export-oriented fish products, on top of which is a product Octopus in order to give it more marketing value and develop marketing mechanisms in order to keep pace with the development witnessed by the sector.
In addition, the speaker draws attention to the opportunities offered by the field of aquaculture, whether in providing a source of food or in creating jobs in coastal areas, at a time when this field does not enjoy, despite the great qualifications that the Kingdom possesses and the promising prospects that it includes It has a wide interest in Morocco, where its production capacity does not exceed 400 tons per year.
Strengthening the offer of beach tourism
In turn, coastal and marine tourism are among the pillars of the blue economy. Years ago, projects were launched to establish beach resorts distributed on the Atlantic and Mediterranean waterfronts, with the aim of strengthening tourism infrastructure and attracting the largest number of tourists in the coming years.
The expert in the field of tourism, Al-Zubair Buhouth, says that the coastal tourist resort projects according to the Blue Scheme have stumbled, which was confirmed by a report of the Supreme Council of Accounts with numerical data.
Buhouth added, in a statement, that the coastal areas inside the Kingdom still record weak numbers in the number of overnight stays compared to other tourist areas such as the city of Marrakesh.
Therefore, the speaker stressed the importance of developing a future vision and a new vision for the maritime field in order to promote coastal tourism, in light of the Kingdom’s declared orientation towards developing the blue economy, adding that the financial loan that Morocco obtained from the World Bank should be used effectively in order to realize The deficit recorded in the beach tourism sector, which is one of the pillars of the blue economy.
Adopting a blue economy strategy
The Economic and Environmental Council of Morocco had issued a detailed report on the blue economy in the Kingdom, in which it considered that marine activities in the country have witnessed in recent decades a dynamic, often according to available opportunities and in an isolated way, without being framed by a comprehensive strategy, stressing that the economy Blue requires action on several levels.
The report, titled “The Blue Economy: A Basic Pillar for Building a New Development Model in Morocco,” clarified that the blue economy is a process in which the efforts of many actors from different sectors and geographical regions are combined.
He added that the blue economy strategy is an opportunity to develop the current and new sectors in Morocco, establish real social integration, provide training and support, achieve sustainable local development, and attract investments.
In its recommendations, the Council called for the development of a tax road map to stimulate the transition towards a blue economy, and to consider the possibility of issuing “blue bonds” based on the package of projects related to the blue economy, and invite Moroccan banks to engage in financing the sectors of the blue economy.
He also called for the necessity of involving the local population in all stages of analyzing qualifications and monitoring the opportunities to be seized in order to advance the sectors of the blue economy.
