Country Background

 

Introduction

The Kingdom of Morocco is situated on the northwestern cusp of Africa, approximately 12 miles from Spain across the Strait of Gibraltar. For the past 3,000 years, this strategic location has contributed to the overall global visibility of Morocco. Since achieving independence from French colonization, Morocco has made significant inroads toward economic prosperity. In the early 1980s Morocco implemented reform programs encouraged by the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the World Bank. Through the present decade, these reforms have resulted in a shift toward export-oriented production, privatization, and government fiscal policy reform.

Geography

 

Location: Northern Africa, bordering the North Atlantic Ocean and the Mediterranean Sea, between Algeria and Western Sahara

Geographic coordinates: 32' 00'' N, 5' 00" W

Map references: Africa

Area: total: 446,550 sq km; land: 446,300 sq km; water: 250 sq km

Area - comparative: slightly larger than California

 Land boundaries:
total: 2,017.9 km
border countries: Algeria 1,559 km, Western Sahara 443 km, Spain (Ceuta) 6.3 km, Spain (Melilla) 9.6 km

Coastline: 1,835 km

Climate: Mediterranean, becoming more extreme in the interior

Terrain: northern coast and interior are mountainous with large areas of bordering plateaus, intermontane valleys, and rich coastal plains

Natural resources: phosphates, iron ore, manganese, lead, zinc, fish, salt

Land use: arable land: 21%; permanent crops: 1%; permanent pastures: 47%; forests and woodland: 20%; other: 11%

Irrigated land: 12,580 sq km

Natural hazards: northern mountains geologically unstable and subject to earthquakes; periodic droughts

Environment - current issues: land degradation/desertification (soil erosion resulting from farming of marginal areas, overgrazing, destruction of vegetation); water supplies contaminated by raw sewage; siltation of reservoirs; oil pollution of coastal waters

Environment - international agreements:
party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Marine Dumping, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands
signed, but not ratified: Environmental Modification, Law of the Sea

People

Population: 30,122,350

Age structure:
0-14 years: 35% (male 5,372,393; female 5,175,114)
15-64 years: 60% (male 9,021,259; female 9,163,548)
65 years and over: 5% (male 632,698; female 757,338) (2000 est.)

Population growth rate: 1.74%

Birth rate: 24.6 births/1,000 population

Death rate: 6.02 deaths/1,000 population

Net migration rate: -1.21 migrant(s)/1,000 population

Infant mortality rate: 49.72 deaths/1,000 live births

                                                                                                               

Life expectancy at birth:
total population: 69.13 years
male: 66.92 years
female: 71.44 years 

Total fertility rate: 3.13 children born/woman

Ethnic groups: Arab-Berber 99.1%, other 0.7%, Jewish 0.2%

Religions: Muslim 98.7%, Christian 1.1%, Jewish 0.2%

Languages: Arabic (official), Berber dialects, French often the language of business, government, and diplomacy

Literacy:
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 43.7%
male: 56.6%
female: 31%

 

Government

 

Country name: 
Kingdom of Morocco

Government type: constitutional monarchy

Capital: Rabat

Independence: 2 March 1956 (from France)

National holiday: Throne Day or Sete de Throne 30 July (1999) (anniversary of King MOHAMED VI's accession to the throne)

Constitution: 10 March 1972, revised 4 September 1992, amended (to create bicameral legislature) September 1996

Legal system: based on Islamic law and French and Spanish civil law system; judicial review of legislative acts in Constitutional Chamber of Supreme Court

 

Suffrage: 21 years of age; universal

Executive branch:
chief of state: King MOHAMED VI (since 23 July 1999)
head of government: Prime Minister Abderrahmane YOUSSOUFI (since 14 March 1998)
cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed by the monarch
elections: none; the monarch is hereditary; prime minister appointed by the monarch following legislative elections

Legislative branch: bicameral Parliament consists of an upper house or Chamber of Counselors (270 seats; members elected indirectly by local councils, professional organizations, and labor syndicates for nine-year terms; one-third of the members are renewed every three years) and a lower house or Chamber of Representatives (325 seats; members elected by popular vote for five-year terms)
elections: Chamber of Counselors - last held 5 December 1997 (next to be held NA December 2000); Chamber of Representatives - last held 14 November 1997 (next to be held NA November 2002)

Judicial branch: Supreme Court, judges are appointed on the recommendation of the Supreme Council of the Judiciary, presided over by the monarch

 

Economy

Economy - overview: Morocco faces the problems typical of developing countries - restraining government spending, reducing constraints on private activity and foreign trade, and achieving sustainable economic growth. Since the early 1980s the government has pursued an economic program toward these objectives with the support of the IMF, the World Bank, and the Paris Club of creditors. The dirham is now fully convertible for current account transactions; reforms of the financial sector have been implemented; and state enterprises are being privatized. Drought conditions depressed activity in the key agricultural sector, and contributed to an economic slowdown in 1999. Favorable rainfalls have led Morocco to predict a growth of 6% for 2000. Formidable long-term challenges include: servicing the external debt; preparing the economy for freer trade with the EU; and improving education and attracting foreign investment to improve living standards and job prospects for Morocco's youthful population.

 GDP: purchasing power parity - $108 billion 

 GDP - real growth rate: 0%

 GDP - per capita: purchasing power parity - $3,600

 GDP - composition by sector: agriculture: 16%; industry: 30%; services: 54%

Population below poverty line: 13.1% 

Inflation rate (consumer prices): 1.9% 

Labor force: 11 million 

Labor force - by occupation: agriculture 50%, services 35%, industry 15% 

Unemployment rate: 19%

Budget:
revenues: $9.1 billion
expenditures: $10 billion, including capital expenditures of $1.7 billion 

Industries: phosphate rock mining and processing, food processing, leather goods, textiles, construction, tourism

Industrial production growth rate: 2%

Agriculture - products: barley, wheat, citrus, wine, vegetables, olives; livestock

Exports - $6.9 billion, primarily food and beverages 30%, semiprocessed goods 23%, consumer goods 21%, phosphates 17%

Exports - partners: France 27%, Spain 11%, India 7%, Japan 6%, Italy 5% 

Imports - $9.7 billion, primarily semiprocessed goods 26%, capital goods 25%, food and beverages 18%, fuel and lubricants 15%, consumer goods 12%, raw materials 4%

Imports - partners: France 22%, Spain 10%, US 7%, Germany 6%, Italy 6% 

Defense Spending - 3.7% of GDP

Debt - external: $19.1 billion 

Economic aid - recipient: $565.6 million 

Currency: 1 Moroccan dirham (DH) = 100 centimes


 


Country Background

Telecommunications Infrastructure

Industrial Production

Internet Diffusion

Electronic Commerce

Hardware Manufacturing

Software Development

IT Labor Market

IT Geographic

Government policies

Analysis: IT strength/Weakness

Analysis: IT Impacts on Business

Reference

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