(CFCA)- Casablanca Finance City Authority (CFCA) organized on April 15, 2025, at the headquarters of the Casablanca-Settat region and with the support of the latter, a conference-debate devoted to the report ” Development dynamics in Africa 2024: skills, jobs & productivity “, Completely published by the African Union Commission in collaboration with the Center for the Development of the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD). On this occasion, and in partnership with the OECD development center, CFCA brought together high -level experts to discuss the importance of skills development and their adequacy with the needs of a changing labor market, in order to guarantee stronger and more lasting growth on the continent.
With a growth forecast of 4% in 2025, Africa is a promising turning point both new challenges and promising opportunities in strategic sectors, including digital services, infrastructure and renewable energies.
Training, engine of development in Africa
In his welcome speech, M. abdellatif mazouzthe president of the Casablanca-Settat region, underlined the importance of decentralized cooperation, in addition to national policies, to bring out high-performance territorial ecosystems to strengthen the adequacy between training, employment and market needs.
Afterwards, Mr. Saïd IbrahimiCEABLANCA FINANCE CITY AUTHORITY (CFCA), highlighted two key levers to strengthen employability on the continent: the role of public-private partnerships to align talent training with market needs, and the importance of skills and people through borders. Two dimensions which are particularly resonated with the priorities of the financial center of Casablanca. “” With more than 70 nationalities represented, the CFC community embodies the richness of an open ecosystem, promoting the mobility of talents and the circulation of skills internationally ”, he said.
High -level dialogue on competitiveness and employability
M. Nizar barakaMinister of Equipment and Water of the Kingdom of Morocco, for its part delivered an introductory discourse by returning to the reforms initiated by Morocco to improve education, fight against school abandonment and develop training sectors aligned with the needs of strategic sectors for the Kingdom such as water desalination, green hydrogen or digital. He also reaffirmed Morocco’s commitment to the co-emergence of the African continent, through structuring investments and educational cooperation, specifying: “Our collective challenge is to make this demographic dynamic a lever for productivity, creation of quality jobs, and inclusive development. »
Afterwards, MME Ragnheiður Elín ÁrnadóttirDirector of the OECD Development Center, stressed that investing in the skills of an expanding African youth can result in sustainable growth and job creation. She said: ” The number of young Africans who have completed the second cycle of secondary or higher education should more than double between 2020 and 2040, from 103 to 240 million. Ensure that these young people find quality jobs, corresponding to their aspirations, can promote the productive and inclusive transformation of Africa. »
M. Arthur Minsathead of the Africa and Middle East unit at the OECD development center, presented the report’s conclusions. He stressed the importance for African countries to invest massively in skills development in order to stimulate productivity, employment and inclusiveness. He has identified several strategic levers, including the improvement of harmonized data, the rapprochement of international standards training systems, strengthening entrepreneurial and transversal skills, investment in technical and professional educational and training establishments, as well as the resolution of skills shortages along regional value channels.
A high -level panel then brought together Mr. Khalid Baddou, chief of staff and director of institutional affairs of the UM6P; Mr. Javier Diaz Cassou, senior Economist for Morocco at the World Bank; And Mr. Badr Choufari, Managing Director and Partner at the Boston Consulting Group.
These various experts had the opportunity to expose their analyzes on the levers of action to be mobilized, by integrating the regional and national specificities, to release the full potential of the continent. This event is part of Casablanca Finance City’s desire to offer an open dialogue space to support reflection on the economic and social transitions of the continent.
To consult the report.
A propos de Casablanca Finance City Authority
Casablanca Finance City Authority (CFCA) is the organization in charge of developing and promoting the financial center of Casablanca Finance City (CFC), the first financial center in Africa according to the Global Financial Centers Index.
About the OECD Development Center
Based in Paris, the OECD Development Center is a forum where member and non-member countries share their experiences of economic and social development policies. The center brings its expertise and facilitates their dialogue. The objective is to help decision -makers to identify public policies capable of stimulating growth and improving living conditions in developing and emerging economies. Morocco has been a member of the center since 2009.
