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Vegetables in Moroccan markets are almost as expensive as in some French supermarkets. However, the minimum wage in the former is five times lower than the former. The country’s agricultural model, based on exports, is being called into question by record inflation by experts and economists alike
Vegetables in Moroccan markets are almost as expensive as in some French supermarkets. However, the minimum wage in the former is five times lower than the former. The country’s agricultural model, based on exports, is being called into question by record inflation by experts and economists alike.
The inflationary surge, at 10.1% year-on-year in February, including a 20.1% rise in food products, has earned ire from all sides in the middle of the holy month of Ramadan. If the scale of the demonstrations against the high cost of living remains limited, discontent is growing. The government has since February, banned the export of certain products, notably tomatoes, in order to supply the local market, prompting protests from professional associations who asked Prime Minister Aziz Akhannouch to reverse this measure.
This crisis questions the viability of the Moroccan agricultural model, especially since this key sector of the economy (13% of GDP and 14% of exports) is exposed to recurrent droughts and climate change. Agriculture Minister Mohamed Sadiki attributed the jump in food prices to “external and cyclical factors”, such as the soaring cost of raw materials and a cold snap that delayed the tomato harvest. In 2008, Morocco adopted an ambitious “Green Morocco Plan” (PMV), which has enabled it to achieve food self-sufficiency of between 50% and 100% depending on the supply chain.
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Since the adoption of the PMV 15 years ago, agricultural production has doubled in value: from 5.6 to more than 11 billion euros, despite the loss of about 7 billion cubic metres of rainfall annually since 1985. But the kingdom remains at the mercy of a drought that has become structural. Added to this are the costs of imported raw materials, such as seeds, energy, nitrogen fertilisers, etc. which have jumped by 30% to 70.
