The role of King Mohammed VI in Morocco's rise as a regional power

Morocco's regional potential is indisputable. This is how the French weekly Le Nouvel Économiste portrays the reign of Morocco's King Mohammed VI during his 24 years of leadership. On Thursday, 6 July, the French magazine published an extensive article describing the keys to the Moroccan government and the importance of the annual "Speech from the Throne".

With a revolutionary economy in the North African region, according to the author, "the country benefits from macroeconomic stability characterised by controlled inflation, adequate foreign exchange reserves and a prudent monetary policy". Rabat's policies have extensively reformed the various sectors that now make Morocco an attractive country for foreign investment, especially for European economic actors. Thanks to economic diversification, improved competitiveness, integration into the global value chain and foreign attraction, the economic development implemented by the Moroccan king has been substantial over the last decade. It is also worth highlighting the commitment to the construction of major infrastructures such as the high-speed train and the Tangier Med port complex.

Morocco's strategic geographical position makes it a country with an idyllic potential to be the connecting figure between Africa, Europe and the Middle East. The author highlights the Moroccan kingdom's position in Africa as a platform for projection, "during the various African economic summits, Morocco is often strongly present through its banking establishments, its insurance companies, but also its service or construction companies", thus emphasises Le Nouvel Économiste's diplomatic role in the region. The Moroccan government's contribution to the creation of transport infrastructures such as roads, airports and ports has also been a key factor in the promotion of the North African territory.  

This same geographical position also makes the kingdom a strategic location for the international diplomatic landscape. The diplomatic transformation led by the Moroccan government is also worth mentioning. With the US administration's recognition of Morocco's sovereignty over Western Sahara, a new era of diplomacy and geopolitics has opened up for the country. The French author also highlights relations with Israel, "defending Palestinian rights no longer takes on the meaning of hostility towards Israel. In its own way, Moroccan diplomacy is revitalising, along with the Abraham Accords, the spirit of the Oslo Accords signed in 1993 between Israel and the PLO".  

Measures such as the health insurance and family allowances to be implemented by the end of the year reflect the Alawi king's willingness to implement social policies, which have been implemented exponentially in recent years, especially in response to the health pandemic, with policies such as the implementation of a network of social assistance to those families most affected. This interest in the application of social policies seems likely to continue, according to the author, "if during the pandemic a social aid network was set up for the most disadvantaged, now it is a question of providing the country with an integrated social system that is sustainable in the long term". The monarch also emphasised his interest in women's rights in the country, wanting to remove all discrimination against women with the reform of the family code. 

The country's future will largely depend on the ability of Morocco's king and his government to continue implementing these measures that have made the North African country a regional leader, as well as on the figure of the king as a rallying point and legitimacy for the continuity of the Moroccan state.