Marruecos mantiene liderazgo en la industria del automóvil de África

Morocco continues to reap good news in the economic sector. The Maghreb country continues to bet on several certain sectors of the economy that are positioning the country in one of its best moments. The Kingdom continues to be the leader in one of the region's fastest growing industries, the automotive sector. The North African nation remains number one in vehicle production on the continent, according to the International Organisation of Motor Vehicle Manufacturers (OICA).

The Kingdom has maintained a leading position since 2017. The OICA says that during last year, the country produced around 403,007 cars, which are divided into 338,339 passenger cars and 64,668 vehicles dedicated to commercial use. Compared to the previous year, the volume of cars has increased by 23%. The 2020 figures were much lower, but this was all due to the coronavirus pandemic; like any other economic sector, the sale and production of products has been paralysed and reduced. In 2020, Morocco produced only 447,213 units, compared to 231,921 vehicles in 2019 when there was no COVID-19. 

Behind Morocco, South Africa is positioned as the second country on the continent that produces the highest volume of vehicles. According to official data, the nation produced some 239,267 cars in 2021. This is followed by Egypt, which has consolidated its position in third place in the ranking with a total production of 23,754 vehicles last year. Only behind it is Algeria in fourth place with a total production of 5,208 units.

Every day, Morocco's automotive industry grows stronger and stronger. Its growth is due to several factors, including its proximity to and policy towards the European market. In the same way, many companies and vehicle manufacturers are beginning to be tempted by the facilities offered by the country to set up in Morocco.

As an extension of this industry, the country intends to continue to grow and become one of the world's major car manufacturing sectors. To this end, it plans to start producing one million cars a year, as a long-term goal and with the intention of becoming one of the world's major powers in this sector.

The latest data showed that in the Alawi kingdom there were 250 companies dedicated to the automotive industry in 2019. These have generated more than 220,000 direct jobs and vehicle exports registered almost 8.5 billion dirhams that year, according to Ayda Fathi, director of the Moroccan Agency for the Development of Investment and Exports (AMDIE).

"Automobiles are Morocco's leading export sector ahead of phosphates. In the first quarter of 2021, the country was the second largest supplier to Europe in terms of the number of cars," she said.

And within this sector, one of the sectors that stands out the most in terms of production is luxury vehicles. After the hard hit by the pandemic that caused a 19.7% drop in this sector, sales during 2021 have recovered and increased considerably. For example, Audi will sell 2,869 cars and have a market share of 2.48%. BMW and Mercedes, meanwhile, managed to sell 2,457 vehicles and 1,890 units, respectively. Porsche even increased its sales by more than 102.7%

To further boost this sector, Morocco is also getting involved in encouraging drivers to start using electric cars. The Kingdom is promoting this industry with various measures such as the installation of numerous charging stations, which, in turn, are in addition to the various actions and objectives framed in the nation's national plan to improve the situation of climate change and zero emission of harmful gases.