The Minister of Economy and Finance, Nadia Fettah Alaoui, assures that Moroccan firms will be given priority in the award of study contracts, in accordance with the legislation in force. In her response to a written question from MP Ahmed El Abbadi, she affirms that her department is very attached to calling on national experts.
In response to a written question from MP Ahmed El Abbadi, member of the Party of Progress and Socialism (PPS), on the use of certain government departments to the services of foreign research firms, Nadia Fettah Alaoui explained that national experts are systematically privileged in public contracts relating to the carrying out of studies, in accordance with Decree No. 431-22-2 relating to public contracts, which enshrines the principle of national preference. She also recalled that the integration of Moroccan skills is obligatory in study contracts entrusted to foreign operators.
The government official also clarified that her ministry only launches study contracts when necessary, particularly for projects requiring specific skills that cannot be covered internally. In this sense, she cited article 147 of the decree on public procurement, which imposes priority on national experts in the conclusion of contracts relating to studies. Furthermore, article 144 requires that foreign design offices involve Moroccan experts for at least 20% of the staff mobilized for the project, except in the event of unavailability of local skills.
In his written question, Ahmed El Abbadi noted the proliferation of Moroccan design offices, which now cover many sectors such as the economy, investment, infrastructure, and even strategic planning. The MP noted that these structures integrate talents from public institutions, private companies and Moroccan universities. According to him, this rise in power of local design offices is a major asset to support Morocco in its development dynamics.
The MP also highlighted the economic and social context of the Kingdom, marked by a proliferation of structuring projects and national programs. In this context, he insisted on the need to carry out in-depth studies to guarantee the success of these initiatives. For him, priority must be given to Moroccan skills, which have in-depth knowledge of local realities and expertise adapted to the needs of the country. This approach would not only reduce costs linked to outsourcing, but also strengthen the autonomy of national design offices.
It should be noted that article 144 of the aforementioned decree provides that “when the project owner cannot carry out the necessary studies by his own means, he may resort to study contracts”. These markets, it is specified, “must be clearly defined as to their purpose, their scope and their execution time to allow competition between service providers”.
