Transport-Three cooperation agreements signed by Maghreb countries

The countries of the Maghreb Arab region have signed three agreements providing for the reinforcement of cooperation in the maritime and land transport sectors.

Signed on Thursday in Syrte, Libya, during the 12th ordinary session of the Maghreb Ministerial Council of Transport, these agreements in the main relate to passenger transport, the transport of dangerous substances and maritime transport.

Though slow, it seems that the Maghreb region’s economic integration is imposing itself despite certain political problems.

“Morocco’s future is in the Maghreb region rather than Europe,” said Habib El Malki, the president of the Centre Marocain de Conjoncture (CMC) and former education minister.

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Morocco creates investment fund for expats

Morocco has created a fund to encourage Moroccan expatriates to invest in their home country.

This fund is part of a strategy announced earlier to help Moroccans living abroad to cope with the international financial crisis.

As part of this strategy, the government and banks will provide up to 75% of the total investment, 10% and 65% respectively, if the investor provides at least 25% in foreign currency.

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Morocco’s reforms yield positive results

The Moroccan Foreign Trade Minister Abdellatif Maazouz revealed :
The WTO has reported that the macroeconomic, structural and commercial reforms that Morocco has undertaken since 2003 have contributed to a growing diversification and a positive overall performance of its economy.

The WTO’s report on Morocco’s trade policies and practices also underlined that these reforms have allowed the country to achieve an average annual real GDP growth rate of 4.5% between 2002 and 2007 and 5.8% in 2008.

This coupled with the kingdom’s efforts to liberalise its economic sectors, increase trade zones and providing “average tariff protection,” has enabled them to turn the public deficit into a surplus, reduce foreign debt and curb inflation.

“The outlook of Morocco’s economy remains positive,” it said, quoting the International Monetary Fund (IMF).

“This review is a real success for Morocco,” the chairman of the WTO session, Istevan Major told MAP news agency, adding that “Morocco’s economic figures are impressive and valued by WTO member-countries.”

“These investments jumped from MAD 6 billion (USD 747 million) in 2002 to MAD 36.4 billion (USD 4.5 billion) in 2007,” Maazouz said during the opening session of the 4th meeting to review Morocco’s trade policy by the WTO.

The meeting was held in the WTO headquarters in Geneva on June 24-26 with the participation of a Moroccan delegation composed of the foreign trade minister and a number of officials representing other ministerial departments.

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Morocco popular with internet property buyers

Morocco is emerging as one of the most popular locations for investment among members of the online overseas property community.

Morocco is one of the most mentioned countries, along with Brazil.

According to forums websites, both nations are currently benefiting from economies which are “weathering the economic downturn better than many more established markets“.

To demonstrate the country’s growing status among overseas investors, a recent survey on the of overseas forum bloggers found that Morocco was nominated as one of the best places to invest outside the EU.

NB: Morocco was recently selected by John Howell of the International Law Partnership as one of the top ten property investment choices for 2009.

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Morocco a pillar of development in the region

In a statement released on July 2008, the IMF called Morocco “a pillar of development in the region” and congratulated King Mohammed VI and the Central Bank on Morocco’s continued strong economic progress and effective management of monetary policy.

Morocco’s economy is expected to achieve a 6.6% growth in the first quarter of 2009 up from 4.8% in the past quarter thanks to prospects for an agricultural campaign above the average of the past five years.

By end December 2008, rainfalls exceeded that of an ordinary year by 106%. This surplus has benefited to all agricultural regions and increased the water stored in dams destined for agriculture to 40.7%. In these conditions and taking into consideration a cereal campaign nearing 70 million quintals, the agricultural value added could increase by 22.2% in the first quarter of 2009, thus contributing 2.9% to the national economic growth.

Morocco is a stable economy with continuous growth over the past half-a-century. GDP per capita grew 47% in the Sixties reaching a peak growth of 274% in the Seventies. However this proved unsustainable and growth scaled back sharply to just 8.2% in the Eighties and 8.9% in the Nineties.
Real GDP growth is expected to maintain over the 2009-13 period.

Whilst the global economic crisis has impacted on the majority of markets and economies, it has only had a limited impact on Morocco. The maximum impact on the Moroccan economy is forecast to decrease the GDP growth rate by only one percentage point in 2009, according to the Bank Al-Maghrib.

In a report issued on July 2008, the IMF noted that Morocco’s financial sector is sound and resilient to shocks, and that the remarkable fiscal consolidation efforts of recent years have allowed the Moroccan economy to absorb the impact of difficult international economic conditions and increasing global prices for essential commodities such as petroleum and energy. International economic experts recognize that Morocco’s exemplary economic performance is beneficial not only to Moroccans, but also for the nearly 90 million people who live the Maghreb.

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Construction and Real Estates in Morocco

In keeping with increased demand for housing, the government is sponsoring large-scale housing projects and continues to support major infrastructure improvements. Foreign investment is fuelling the real estate industry while the growing population of youth is increasing demand for rentals.Cement, a strong component of Morocco’s industrial sector, is highly regional and has been completely privatised for some years. Capacity has risen to keep up with demand, with most of the product going into real estate rather than road or other construction projects. Rising energy costs have pushed cement-producing companies to find more cost-effective sources of power. The construction boom and efforts to improve infrastructure are creating many opportunities for public-private partnerships.
The boom is also creating jobs, yet the local labour force is largely unskilled, causing some contracts go to foreign firms despite the higher labour costs. The real estate sector is seeing record investment, as costs overall are much lower than European sites such as Spain’s Costa del Sol. Most of the demand in Morocco is for moderate housing and a decrease in lending rates has made home-ownership more accessible.

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Morocco Investment-Nador Off Plan Development

Nador to have its own port complex.

Nador West Med will be built in the Mediterranean Botoya Bay, 30 km west of Nador city.

As per its sister development in the city of Tangier, Nador will have its own port, “Nador West Med” , which will be a “a mega port industrial and commercial complex”

Construction work will commence next year and was revealed by the Minister of Equipment and transport, Karim Ghellab, during a press conference on Monday the 7th of July 2009.

The complex will have a tanker terminal and will be operational by 1015 – with a storage capacity of 1 to 2 million tons and a 3,000-meter quay. – The complex, will also have an integrated industrial platform (free zone) open to local and foreign investors (off-shoring), and will be built in the Mediterranean Botoya Bay, approx 30 km west of Nador city.

“Energy is at the heart of this project, which will have strategic advantages for Morocco, particularly in terms of securing hydrocarbon supplies, creating a new development hub and reinforcing Morocco’s position in the Mediterranean,” quote – Energy Minister Amina Benkhedra.

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Morocco attracts British tourist operators

In excess of 80 British tour operators and 34 Moroccan professionals met on Tuesday in London, as part of a workshop to promote Morocco’s tourist destination.

The workshop provided an opportunity for the two countries “tourist professionals” to establish new partnerships and build upon existing ones.

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Property investors may bank on Cape Verde heritage

Cape Verde has been among the more exciting emerging property markets for many people in recent years. Being the closest tropical islands to Europe is just one reason for its appeal and since the advent of direct flights.

The endless summer climate, Chrystal clear waters are just two favoured attraction. But it doesn’t stop there.
The archipelago has seen substantial economic development, with the country joining the World Trade Organisation last year. It also enjoys a stable democracy, with two main parties and peaceful changes of government taking place since free elections began in 1990.Throw into the mix their plan to join the EU and you have an incredibly attractive investment opportunity which seems to buck the tend of the worldwide economic slow down.

This has raised Cape Verde’s profile and provides a stable investment platform both for the individual and corporate investor.

Presently, the concentration of tourism and properties is primarily focused on Sal, rather than Santiago, even though the latter is the largest island and includes the capital, Praia. But this may change as the ruins of the former capital – Cidade Velha – is on the candidate list to be added to those sites with Unesco world heritage status,. Founded in 1462, the city was the first European settlement on the islands and was inhabited until 1770, when it was abandoned in favour of Praia because it had proved too hard to defend against piracy.

Such a development may indeed bolster tourism on the island and with it the buy-to-let tourist property rental sector. A look at the list of places listed by Unesco shows that to elevate Cidade Velha to world heritage status will place it on a par with the Taj Mahal, Stonehenge, Sydney Opera House and the Great Wall of China. For investors in Cape Verde property, the decisions made at the Unesco meeting in progress now could be highly significant.

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