King Mohammed VI had not been seen in Morocco for months before reports surfaced on 16 April that he had returned for a brief visit.
Earlier in the month a ‘selfie’ — taken and posted by the embattled Lebanese Prime Minister Saad Hariri — appeared on social media showing Hariri, King Mohammed VI and Saudi Arabia’s Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman (MbS) together at the exclusive Le Gabriel restaurant in Paris. This came as a surprise, given the generally assumed tepid relations between Morocco and Saudi Arabia over Rabat’s neutral position over Qatar during the Gulf crisis in mid-2017, but also the possibly hostile relations between Hariri and MbS.
The image also raised concerns among Moroccans. They had been worried about their monarch’s health and his prolonged absence from the country during an economically difficult time. King Mohammed VI (b.1963) has already undergone heart surgery at the Clinique Ambroise Paré, as well as an eye procedure, and there are also reports that he is divorcing Princess Lalla Salma (b.1979) who has been his wife since 2002.
Many Moroccans complain that they only know what the king is doing through photographs posted on social media of him enjoying luxury in Europe.
The lifestyle of Mohammed VI stands in stark contrast to those of his subjects. The country’s annual economic growth rate is slowing. According to the High Planning Commission on 10 April, in the first quarter of 2018, annual growth was only 2.9% compared to 3.8% during the same period in 2017.
Reduced agricultural productivity was a prime reason for the downturn and this has severely affecting the livelihoods of the 39% of the population who work in the agriculture sector. An increase in import requirements has also stifled growth.
In the absence of economic opportunity, particularly for the youth, the informal sector has been growing. According to a Confédération Générale des Enterprises du Maroc (CGEM) report in April, the informal sector comprises 20% of Morocco’s GDP and employs around 2.4 million people.
Despite these challenges, however, the IMF suggested in mid-March that the economy will continue to be one of the MENA region’s best performers, primarily because of the country’s relative political stability. There were also reports last month that the Finance Ministry is planning four sovereign sukuk (Islamic bond) issues for 2018 to help the government borrow funds. The IMF has even suggested that annual growth would recover by the end of the year to about 4.4%.
This article is taken from our new Morocco country risk analysis. To receive a free sample contact our consultancy team here.
