Mobilisation sans précédent de la BEI au Maroc en 2020 pour lutter contre la pandémie de COVID-19

Already partners of the Euro-Mediterranean University of Fes (UEMF), the European Union and EIB provided a grant of €500 000 (MAD 5.4 million) for purchasing IT equipment to ensure teaching could continue during the pandemic. This has provided 422 scholarship students with a laptop and a 4G modem on a one-year plan so that they can continue their UEMF classes remotely. The grant also made it possible to purchase 3D printers to produce 1 000 reusable protective medical masks for hospitals.

Expanded support for the entire private sector and particularly for agricultural companies, women and micro-entrepreneurs

The EIB provided new financing guarantees to support SMEs and private sector recovery via the public system of the Caisse Centrale de Garantie (CCG), which plays a key role in facilitating access to finance for micro, small and medium-sized enterprises (MSMEs). An initial tranche of €150 million (MAD 1.6 billion) was signed in 2020 and a second for the same amount is planned for 2021. The EIB financing enables the supply of loan guarantees to be expanded via products such as “Damane Oxygène”, thereby improving companies’ access to finance to address the crisis-related liquidity gap and support their investment projects.

With the aim of making the agricultural sector and farmers in rural areas more resilient, the EIB signed its first partnership with Crédit Agricole du Maroc (CAM), a longstanding leader in agricultural sector financing in Morocco. The €200 million (over MAD 2.1 billion) in financing will support and support productive investments that create jobs as part of Morocco’s “Génération Green 2020-2030” agricultural strategy.

Following on from its assistance for Moroccan microfinance, the Bank financed two operations to support micro-entrepreneurs in 2020. The €10 million (around MAD 108 million) loan to JAÏDA, the country’s second largest microfinance lender, will cover micro-loans under €25 000 (around MAD 270 000) for the self-employed, individual entrepreneurs and micro-entrepreneurs in order to promote income-generating activities. A €3 million (MAD 33 million) loan to Al Amana will directly benefit 11 560 micro-entrepreneurs, around 45% of whom are women and 48% of whom are in rural areas. These two operations help to preserve jobs in micro-enterprises heavily affected by the crisis while also reducing the risk of social exclusion for those without easy access to conventional loans.

Lastly, in the automotive sector, the EIB provided €54 million to AGC Automotive Induver Morocco for developing the activities of its automotive glass plant in Kenitra.

The EIB has been a key partner for Morocco for 40 years. The EIB finances the development and implementation of key projects in vital sectors of the Moroccan economy such as business support, agriculture, water and sanitation, education, health, transport and even renewable energies.