Guide to internationalising your company in Morocco at the IMEX Madrid 2022 trade fair
How2Go, a consulting company for the internationalisation of expresas, offered a webinar during the internationalisation week IMEX Madrid 2022 to bring Morocco closer to the Spanish business sector. During the webinar, Ignacio Bartolomé, CEO of the company gave an overview of the most important points to take into account to enter into an economic adventure in the Maghreb country.
At the beginning of his speech, by positioning Morocco on a map, the company How2Go stressed the importance of considering Western Sahara as Moroccan. The provincial capitals of Dakhla and El Ayoun were on the map presented by the consultancy firm in its presentation. "It is important when doing business in Morocco, and it is the most appropriate thing to do. The Sahara is part of Morocco", Bartolomé stressed in his presentation.
He followed his webinar with a summary of Morocco's commercial characteristics, in terms of its GDP, the volume of its exports, its per capita income, etc. ...., as well as the impact of COVID in the neighbouring country. "With 16,000 deaths due to COVID, the country has resisted the virus very well," said the CEO. "And with 63% of the population fully vaccinated, it is one of the African countries at the top of this ranking," he added.
How2Go placed special emphasis in its presentation to the entrepreneurs on the Moroccan energy sector. This is a booming sector, and a very topical one, following the commissioning of the Noor solar power plants: "There is a vein of business here that is essential and indispensable. We ourselves are now running many projects in this sector". The agricultural industry and the technology of this sector is another of the strengths that How2Go presents to the Spanish business community. "The agri-food sector is somewhat traditional, but it is looking to expand. There are many opportunities here for Spanish companies. Not only in machinery, but also in water management, in final processes such as packaging. Morocco is a more traditional country, but it is beginning to take into account the needs of its end consumers, who are the Europeans, and who have certain requirements in this agri-food sector that affect the final products".
Bartolomé of How2Go highlighted Morocco's position in the DoingBusinnes ranking. Morocco ranks 53rd in the world in terms of the ease of doing business, developing projects and setting up in the country as a company. Compared to its North African neighbours, Morocco is far ahead of them, being the first country in the ranking and positioning itself at a level that the CEO of How2Go described as "practically European".
How2Go also made an interesting review as a guide to how they advise Spanish entrepreneurs to relate to their Moroccan counterparts. "The relationship with Moroccan companies takes time. You have to take it calmly and patiently. It's nothing like the American way. To help SME entrepreneurs, he gave a brief overview of the country's culture, which How2Go expands on in its personalised guides available on its website. Ignacio Bartolomé explained that the role of his company is similar to that of the Spanish ICEX internationalisation service, but "it works in a different way in some ways".