The Moroccan administration revealed its new national strategy for the promotion of industry in mid-February at a ceremony attended by King Mohamed VI, various ministers and prominent figures from the private sector. The National Pact for Industrial Emergence outlines multi-sector reforms designed to stimulate the industrial sector for the period of 2009 to 2015. Minister of Industry, Commerce, and New Technology, Ahmed Reda Chami, said that the pact’s 111 measures will rely on coordination between the public and private sectors to increase foreign direct investment (FDI), support small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), expand human resources capacity and improve the country’s business climate, which continually receives low ratings in international rankings on account of high levels of corruption. Strong in stating quantifiable objectives, the strategy seeks to raise the volume of exports by $11 billion, create 220,000 lasting industrial jobs and to increase industrial gross domestic product (GDP) by $10 billion.
