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On Wednesday September 25, the government finally revealed the Morocco Digital 2030 strategy articulated around two strategic axes and three catalysts. The two axes are theE-gov and the revitalization of the digital economy. THE Digital talentsthe cloud and connectivity are the enablers.
Once the fervor of the announcement has passed, what does the ecosystem really think of it? Is this a strategy capable of propelling Morocco forward and allowing it to catch up with its great delay in this area which is experiencing rapid progress and even more frequent ruptures than in the past?
“What I can tell you is that this ambitious strategy puts forward objectives, but without presenting a roadmap which sets out how these objectives will be achieved,” comments an actor in the ecosystem on condition of anonymity.
The strategy having been designed “as part of a broad consultation involving almost the entire ecosystem”, as one operator explains to us, few players dare to criticize it openly, even in a constructive manner.
Beware of convergence
“For the moment, what I have to say is that there is a real change to be made at the level of all the actors, public and private, so that this strategy can achieve its objectives. The objectives assigned are very ambitious, which requires a convergence of actions from all stakeholders: public, private, companies (large and small), citizens, associations… We are in a momentum, that is to say that “We all need to be at the same speed so that we can, in 2030, honor the commitments of this strategy”, believes an important player in the ecosystem.
This ambitious strategy puts forward objectives, but without presenting a roadmap that sets out how these objectives will be achieved.
This details what he considers to be a strong point of the strategy. “There startup has its full weight in Maroc Digital 2030. This is the first time that a label will be given to the startup and, by extension, a regulatory framework favorable to its international expansion. Which is very important. In terms of support, this strategy is very precise on the quality of support that a startup must have at the different stages of its development, particularly from the idea to its acceleration.
The other advantageous point that the new digital strategy will offer is that of encouraging and strengthening existing Moroccan incubators, but also encouraging the creation of new public or semi-public incubators. “This will allow a greater number of startups to emerge. And then, there is also the international opening, that is to say that this strategy intends to open up to international incubators and even VC (venture capital) and international investors,” notes our source.
On the financing side, Maroc Digital 2030 will also allow the establishment of a real incentive framework for the creation of startups through the establishment of life and incubation grants, the aim of which is to encourage certain employees to transform into startupers, while minimizing financial risk, recalls our source.
“Today, it is not easy to switcher from employee to business founder. The employee is used to receiving a monthly salary, knowing that entrepreneurship requires at least two years of infancy before being able to generate regular income. This life grant will then allow people who were employees to become entrepreneurs, in turn creating jobs and added value.”
Conceded thanks to awareness-raising efforts, national preference remains to be improved
“The other, equally important, axis on which this strategy focused is that of access to the market, in particular through access to national preference so that our companies, major accounts and the public favor innovation and national products. Significant lobbying was carried out for years to obtain this national preference,” confides our source.
Every day, startups agonize because they cannot find the right digital skills
“We are still not satisfied. There is really work that needs to be done so that we can reserve part of the public and private order for these startups,” she concedes.
“The strategy also looked at the issue of talent. Every day, startups agonize because they cannot find the right digital skills. There is the problem of talent drain which we unfortunately cannot resolve immediately The answer to this problem lies in this strategy, in particular through the production of a digital talent center. There are very ambitious objectives to create something annually by 2030. 100.000 talents in digital. I believe that if we reach this figure, we will have won the effective deployment of this strategy,” she continues.
“An excessive focus on startups risks disadvantaging Moroccan SMEs/VSEs”
While welcoming the announcement of the new digital strategy, a member of the management office of the Moroccan Federation of Information Technologies, Telecommunications and Offshoring (Apebi) nevertheless believes that an excessive focus on startups risks putting Moroccan SMEs/VSEs at a disadvantage.
“We hope that this new strategy will succeed. Through Apebi and as SMEs, we are supporting this project today. I nevertheless hope that the latter will also put SMEs and VSEs at the center. Despite their age, those “They risk being disadvantaged by an excessive focus on startups,” he adds.
Our interlocutor also expressed reservations about public-private partnerships. “PPPs are unfortunately not applied as they should be. Today, those responsible are turning more towards the public when it comes to signing agreements. The private sector is often less solicited. However, it is necessary to develop relationships with the private sector which remains more active and responsive. Private actors are on the ground and they can move faster,” he insists.
The sooner the Moroccan government launches 5G, the better the 2030 digital strategy will be, which will progress rapidly
The new digital strategy takes into account the introduction of 5G to reach 25% of the territory covered by 2026, and 70% in 2030. A deployment that the State must facilitate and not seek to “make profitable”, believes this actor.
“The sooner the Moroccan government launches 5G, the better the 2030 digital strategy will be, which will progress rapidly. Now, it is important not for the State to take money behind it, to avoid delays and in order to to put in place, as quickly as possible, this extraordinary engine which will serve the country”.
According to our last interlocutor, a digital player who has led an ecosystem company for twelve years, the proposed strategy lacks ambition and purpose. “It’s not Tangier Med, but a small fishing port on the coast.” This is not how we are going to play in the big leagues and give birth to leading actors. “Digital is a new economy, and a de facto globalization. We are not there, not at all.”
For him, once again, we launch a strategy without having evaluated the previous one. Our source suggests that so far, the Digital Agency has been a failure. “It only served to help ministries begin their digital transformation or carry out part of it. That’s all” And to conclude: “It is not enough to consult professionals to develop a strategy. This one is not meant to be consensual.”
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