King Mohammed VI received Bank Al-Maghrib’s annual economic report for 2024 on Tuesday at the Royal Palace in Tetouan, where Abdellatif Jouahri, the Governor of the Central Bank, presented a comprehensive overview of Morocco’s economic performance amid a challenging global environment.
In his address, Mr. Jouahri emphasized Morocco’s steady economic recovery, pointing out that the national GDP grew by 3.8% last year. This growth was largely driven by a robust 4.8% expansion in non-agricultural sectors.
“The Kingdom has managed to redress its economic trajectory despite an unstable international environment marked by persistent drought effects,” he noted.
Inflation, a major concern worldwide, slowed sharply to just 0.9% in Morocco, which allowed the Central Bank to ease monetary policy by reducing its key interest rate twice. Furthermore, the institution maintained full liquidity support to banks, underpinning financial stability.
The Moroccan economy also created 82,000 new jobs, although unemployment remains relatively high at 13.3%, indicating ongoing challenges in the labor market.
On fiscal matters, the public deficit was trimmed to 3.9% of GDP thanks to effective tax revenue mobilization and innovative financing methods.
The current account deficit was kept in check at 1.2% of GDP, buoyed by strong industrial exports—particularly in automobiles and phosphates—a reduced energy bill, and remittances from Moroccans abroad alongside tourism income.
Official foreign exchange reserves topped 375 billion dirhams (around 35.1 billion euros), enough to cover more than five and a half months of imports, providing a buffer against external shocks.
Mr. Jouahri also reflected on Morocco’s structural transformation since the early 2000s, crediting the leadership of King Mohammed VI for significant institutional, social, and infrastructure reforms.
However, he acknowledged a slowdown in growth and job creation over the past decade, underscoring the urgency of recent royal initiatives focusing on water, energy, and food infrastructure investments to meet looming continental and global challenges.
He identified three key priorities to sustain economic ambitions: “strengthening resilience to shocks, increasing the agility of public action with regular monitoring of results, and preserving macroeconomic balances through continued budgetary consolidation, pension reform, and modernization of the legal framework for public finances.”
Closing his presentation, the Central Bank Governor stressed the need to harness the country’s “vital forces,” emphasizing that “the 2030 deadlines must become a lever to propel Morocco towards higher income categories, based on its stability, credibility, and the strategic clarity of its Royal vision.”
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