Moroccan expatriates.. an economic force at the service of their country

lace- Crowds of Moroccan immigrants began their annual trip to visit their country for the summer vacation, and many of them are keen to return this June, to spend Eid al-Adha in a family atmosphere and according to social rituals, and Moroccan immigrants constitute a human and economic force that contributes to the stability and development of the Kingdom.

The number of Moroccans registered with the Kingdom’s consulate network reached 5.1 million as of April 2021, which represents 15% of the population of Morocco, but with the addition of people who live abroad and are not registered with consulates – whether Moroccans born in Morocco, residents abroad or doubles. Nationality Born and resident abroad – one or both of whose parents holds Moroccan nationality – the total number of Moroccans in the world can be estimated between 6 and 6.5 million people.

According to the data published by the Social, Economic and Environmental Council last year in a report on immigrants, Europe receives 89% of Moroccan immigrants (4.5 million Moroccans registered with the Kingdom’s consulates reside in Europe), while the rest is distributed to more than 100 countries in the world (in 202 thousand in Asia, 212 thousand in Africa, and 150 thousand in America).

France includes the largest share of Moroccans in the world, as their number exceeded one million people, and in Spain their number reached 900 thousand, while in Belgium their number reached about 570 thousand in 2021, which represents 5% of the population of this country, and in the Netherlands there are about 415 thousand Moroccan according to 2021 statistics, and in Italy 423 thousand according to 2019 statistics.

The members of the Moroccan community abroad are mostly active young people, and the national research for international migration carried out by the High Commissioner for Planning in 2020 showed that 60% of Moroccans in the world are between the ages of 15 and 39, while the percentage of people aged 60 and over is less than 4%.

According to the same source, Moroccans abroad enjoy a level of education relatively higher than the average recorded among the country’s population, as more than a third of them have a higher level of education (33.5%), and a third of them are available at the secondary level.

In recent years, highly trained Moroccan talent has turned to Canada and the United States of America more than to the traditional destinations of immigration (France, Belgium, the Netherlands, Germany), and 76% of Moroccans residing in North America hold postgraduate degrees, compared to 48% of immigrants who go to traditional European destinations.

remarkable development

Moroccans of the world constitute the region (province) No. 13 of the Kingdom of Morocco, according to what was explained to Al-Jazeera Net, Abdel-Fattah El-Zein, an expert in immigration, indicating that the constitution provided a model for Moroccan immigration that pays great attention to Moroccan immigrants by allocating 5 chapters for them.

Moroccans around the world contribute to the development of their country’s economy by enriching the treasury with hard currency through remittances and through investment and tourism.

And 83.4% of immigrants transfer part of their income to Morocco, and the share of remittances reaches 8% of the GDP, and represents 20% of the resources collected by banks and finances a third of the trade deficit.

According to the data of the Exchange Office, money transfers issued by Moroccans residing abroad amounted to more than 35.42 billion dirhams ($3.5 billion) in April 2023.

The office stated that these transfers recorded an increase of 12.8% compared to April 2022.

The volume of remittances from Moroccans residing abroad amounted to 109.15 billion dirhams ($10.8 billion) in 2022, compared to 93.67 billion dirhams ($9.2 billion) in 2021.

Economist Rachid Sari said that the remittances of Moroccan immigrants to their families reveal their attachment to their home country and their solidarity with their families.

Sari added, in an interview with Al-Jazeera Net, “During the time of the health crisis, immigrants violated expectations that predicted a decline in remittances and their depletion due to their impact on the crisis and the loss of some of them from work, but the opposite is what happened.”

According to Abdel-Fattah El-Zein, immigrants’ remittances contribute to supporting Moroccan families and supporting the country’s hard currency balance.

He explained that many families depend on the financial assistance they receive from their members residing outside the country, which contributes to combating poverty, as these funds go to improving the standard of living of families, children’s education, access to health services and recreational services.

Transfers

However, these important remittances are not matched by effective investment in the home country, according to Rashid Sari, as only 10% of these remittances are directed towards investment.

Sari added that these investments are directed towards simple and traditional projects, such as buying real estate, cafes, and others.

He pointed out that the new generation of Moroccans is characterized by high expertise and competencies, which requires political actors and government institutions to work to provide them with incentives and provide the appropriate climate and conditions to direct a larger part of financial transfers towards investment in creative projects.

Al-Zein called on the regional investment councils to play their full role in encouraging Moroccans from around the world to invest in the mother country, pointing out that they currently possess wide competencies that qualify them for this, such as keeping up with, searching for funds and supervising industrial zones.

Al-Zein points out that many ideas and recommendations were formulated during the formulation of the new development model, and are concerned with stimulating Moroccans around the world to invest in promising economic sectors, stressing that what is now required is the development of public policies and programs to implement the recommendations.

He called on political actors to develop programs and methods to invest migrants’ remittances for the benefit of social and economic development, as well as to accompany and accompany seasonal migrants who come from low-income families so that returnees do not fall into the poverty trap again if they do not invest their savings well, pointing to the launch of some returnees of cooperatives and service projects that generate income for them. An income that enabled them to improve their social conditions.

tourism

At the beginning of this June, the “Welcome 2023” operation was launched to receive Moroccan immigrants residing abroad, a process that will last until September 15, during which a number of institutions and government departments will be prepared to receive and accompany migrants during transit and return to and from Morocco throughout the extended process period. For three and a half months through ports, airports and land crossings.

This operation is considered one of the largest transit operations in the world. Last year, the number of arrivals through various sea and air ports reached about 3 million, according to statistics from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, African Cooperation and Moroccans residing abroad.

The “Hello 2023” operation program includes about 24 national and international sites to help and keep pace with members of the Moroccan community at the level of Morocco, France, Italy and Spain, and about 1,400 counsellors, doctors and volunteers are being prepared for this operation.

During their visit to Morocco in the summer, Moroccan immigrants contribute to moving the local economy and reviving tourism activity. According to data from the Ministry of Tourism, more than 620,000 Moroccan citizens residing in the diaspora flocked to tourist cities during June 2022.

Al-Zein calls on the Ministry of Tourism to provide more offers and tourism programs aimed at Moroccan immigrants, in order to introduce the third and fourth generations in particular to their country’s heritage and culture and strengthen their connection with it.