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Rabat – More than 20 years ago it started Morocco His first steps in the world of aviation industry have made him one of the leading countries in this sector today, and he aspires to be able in the next few years to assemble parts of a complete aircraft inside the Kingdom’s factories.
Today, Morocco manufactures more than 40 parts of the aircraft, including sensitive and important parts that are manufactured in only 5 countries.
Thanks to the development of industrial infrastructure, support for investment in the field, and the training of cadres and competencies, Morocco has been able to build an advanced base for aviation industries that includes several modern professions with high added value and various specializations, including: manufacturing engine parts, composite materials, and wires, as well as assembling important parts of the aircraft body, making it, thanks to this dynamism, one of the 20 largest countries in the world that embraces the aircraft industry of all components.
Competitive destination
According to data provided to Al Jazeera Net by the Ministry of Industry and Commerce, the value of the sector’s exports amounted to 10.7 billion dirhams ($1 billion) during the first five months of 2024, recording a growth of 18% compared to the same period in 2023, especially thanks to the increase in sales in the assembly sector.
In 2023, aviation industry exports reached AED 22 billion ($2.2 billion), an increase of nearly 38% compared to 2021.
The aviation industry is moving towards launching a new success story that matches that written in the automotive industry, which has become the largest export industry in the Kingdom, which has strengthened its position as a competitive and credible industrial destination.
According to the Moroccan Ministry of Industry and Trade, the country is reaping the fruits of the dynamism witnessed by the aviation industry in recent years in terms of providing hard currency and achieving economic development in Morocco. This is due to a number of factors, including the export of aircraft components to global markets, which increases revenues in foreign currency, as well as cooperation with global airlines and partnerships with major companies in the aviation industry, which contributes to attracting foreign investment and increasing revenues in hard currency.
According to the same source, these partnerships also help transfer technology and knowledge, improve local technical skills and enhance Morocco's ability to compete in the global market.
Skilled workforce
The aviation sector employs more than 21,000 Moroccan cadres and competencies. The qualified workforce is one of the elements of Morocco’s attractiveness as an investment destination, and contributes to enhancing companies’ productivity and improving their competitiveness.
Morocco is implementing several specialized vocational training programs for technicians and engineers, with the aim of developing local competencies in this field.
The task of training and educating the workforce is undertaken by institutes created for this purpose, including the institute specializing in aviation professions and airport logistics services in Nouaceur, on the outskirts of Casablanca, which was established in partnership with stakeholders in the sector, with the aim of providing training in the field of advanced technologies. It currently has an educational structure that is compatible with internationally approved standards to anticipate the needs of companies in terms of qualified human resources.
The Aviation Professions Institute, which is the fruit of an innovative partnership between the state and professionals in this industry, aspires to be a high-level training center to meet the various needs of manufacturers in the aviation industry sector in terms of the quality of human resources and innovation.
International partnerships
According to the Ministry of Industry and Trade, the Kingdom attracts more than 140 international companies in the aviation industry, including: Airbus European andBoeing American, which confirms the position that the Kingdom currently occupies as a strategic partner with high quality and competitiveness.
One of the most important projects completed in this sector is the opening by the company “SABCA Morocco” of a new factory specializing in the manufacture and semi-complete assembly of the “PC-12” aircraft body in 2022 on the outskirts of Casablanca Airport.
This is in addition to signing a protocol agreement with one of the largest aviation companies in the world, Collins Aerospace, with the aim of creating a supply system for the company in Morocco. The signing took place last July during the Farnborough Air Show in Britain.
In parallel, the first steps have been taken to develop one of the missing links in the national supply chain: aircraft cabin interiors. At the Farnborough Airshow, a Memorandum of Understanding was signed with the Canadian company Gal Aerospace to establish a joint venture in Morocco to develop a unit for the production, modification and completion of aircraft cabin interiors.
A partnership agreement was also signed regarding the localization of the Spanish ACITURRI Group in the Mid Park area. The project is expected to contribute to strengthening the national aviation industry by developing the industrial system for engine parts in Morocco, transferring technology and developing skills.
The additional investment expected in 2024 in equipment for the new site is estimated at 25 million dirhams ($2.5 billion).
The Ministry of Industry expects that these partnerships will add a new gain to the many qualifications of the national aviation platform, whose global competitiveness is being strengthened day after day in order to achieve a greater local integration rate for the aircraft manufacturing sector in Morocco.
Plans and expectations
The aviation industry has a promising future, characterised by technological advancement, expansion into international markets and enhanced environmental sustainability.
The Ministry of Industry says it has drawn up plans to develop the sector and achieve its great ambition of assembling complete aircraft parts in 2030. These plans include:
- Diversifying the sector’s capabilities and the emergence of new professions by targeting activities with high potential and high added value.
- Diversification of partners (suppliers and customers) in the Moroccan aviation platform, in particular by leveraging Moroccan expertise for the benefit of African countries in the fields of maintenance, repair, overhaul and engineering.
- Monitoring developments in the global labour market in order to adapt the training offer to new professions.
- Reducing carbon emissions in industry by encouraging the use of clean energy and improving energy efficiency among sector players.
- Directing public markets, especially military ones, towards developing aviation sector activities.
The big challenge
Economic expert Mehdi Faqir believes that Moroccan distinction in this industry was not traditional, as it began with quantity and then moved towards quality.
He explained – in an interview with Al Jazeera Net – that the interest in the first phase was focused on attracting investors, while in the second phase the interest was in industrial concentration, which reached record levels.
The spokesman stressed that what is currently required is to continue supporting these industrial activities and move towards transforming Morocco into a preferred industrial destination for investors.
He pointed out that civil aviation has witnessed a major boom since the Covid-19 crisis, as airline companies' requests have reached record levels. He added, “There is a very important investment offer and Morocco must exploit it.”
He pointed out that the major challenge facing this industry lies in diversifying investment offers to maintain this superiority and not limiting it to manufacturing civilian aircraft parts only, but moving towards space industries, military industries and other industries.
Promising market
For his part, Rashid Sari, head of the African Center for Strategic Studies and Digitization, noted that the growth rate of aircraft industry exports increased steadily between 2021 and June 2024.
The growth rate of these exports between 2021 and 2022 amounted to about 15%, and between 2022 and 2023 it increased by 33%, and in the first half of 2024 the rate increased by 16%.
Sari explained to Al Jazeera Net that these percentages indicate the presence of dynamism in the sector, but in terms of size and revenues, they are not large when compared to the automotive industry, which achieved about 141 billion dirhams ($14.1 billion) in 2023.
The spokesman pointed out that industrial activity exports achieved a total of 375 billion dirhams ($37.5 billion), but aviation industry exports only constitute 22 billion dirhams ($2.2 billion).
However, he sees Morocco as a promising market because it has advanced industrial platforms and relies on qualified and competent technicians and engineers in the field, which encourages the attraction of private companies from the United States and encourages the flow of foreign investments.
“We have a success story in the automotive industry and I can almost say that 25 years ago we did not expect that we would enter the aviation industry and achieve what we have achieved today,” Sari says.
He continued, “I do not think that we had the courage in the past decades to set a goal like the one we have set today, which is to manufacture 100% of the aircraft in Morocco by 2030.”
Sari added that Morocco is currently ranked first in the aviation industry in Africa and is ranked high globally, so he sees promising prospects for making Morocco a global center for manufacturing and assembling aircraft parts.
These prospects are based on positive indicators, including industrial infrastructure, highly skilled labor, business climate, tax incentives, and the legislative system, indicators that the speaker urges to market to partners to achieve greater returns and attract more investments.
