Spain and Morocco sealed their political and business alliance this Monday in Madrid to increase investment by companies that want to cross the Strait in one direction or another. A delegation from the Alawite country, made up of government representatives and leaders of business organizations, visited the CEOE to value the moment of "friendship" and "good neighborliness" between the two countries. The neighboring nation offered Spanish companies an investment charter with opportunities on the horizon and an attractive tax framework.
The business meeting was entitled "investing in Morocco for a common prosperity", which offers an idea of its objective. What was unthinkable several months ago has now become, after the government's political turn, an economic plan shared by "two strategic partners", as representatives of both countries pointed out. For Spain, Morocco is a place where more investments can land. Acciona, for example, is immersed in the struggle for a large desalination plant in Tangier. And for Morocco, a fluid relationship with Spain can be the gateway for its companies in Europe and Latin America.
Among the economic advantages that Morocco offers to Spanish companies is the free repatriation of profits, the absence of capital restrictions for non-residents, fifty double taxation agreements, government incentives for hiring and innovation, five years of exemption tax for investments in industrial acceleration zones, followed by a payment of 20% of taxes for the next 20 years, a VAT of 0% in those poles and an unlimited exemption from customs duties. In other words, Morocco wants to give a boost to these industrial centers. One of them is Casablanca Finance City, which aspires to become the main financial city in North Africa and where, among others, the Bank of China has landed.
The meeting, held at the employer's headquarters in Madrid, was attended by the president of the CEOE, Antonio Garamendi; the Minister of Industry, Héctor Gómez; the Secretary of State for Commerce, Xiana Méndez; as well as directors of Spanish companies already established in Morocco who reported the positive experience of their investments. For example, María Helena Antolín, from Grupo Antolín, which has been manufacturing automotive parts in Morocco since 2005; or Jorge Cosmen, president of Alsa, who stressed the importance of "maintaining dialogue" with the neighboring country. “The Morocco of 25 years ago is nothing like today's”, he stressed. Alsa operates in six cities in the neighboring country and intends to continue growing.
The president of Balearia, Adolfo Utor, stressed, for his part, that the Moroccan government must guarantee free competition and "flee from protectionist claims" if it wants to receive more investment. The shipping company has an ambitious investment plan in the country, but it did place duties on the local authorities.
Morocco is Spain's first trading partner in Africa. In 2022 the exchange reached almost 20,000 million. There are 17,000 Spanish companies that export to the southern country and barely 1,000 with industrial processes on African soil. More than 200 weekly flights. And barely 14 kilometers away, according to the ambassador in Madrid, Karima Benyaich. Relations are already normalized.
One of the protagonists of the event was Mohamed VI, the name most cited by Moroccan political and business representatives. "As the king's representative, I am pleased to highlight the interest of commercial relations," said the same ambassador. These advances are possible "thanks to her majesty, which launched a new development model," said Ali Seddiki, general director of the Moroccan investment development agency. The relationship between both royal houses was also valued during the meeting.
Morocco wants to open the door to more investment from all sectors. Automobile, textile, tourism, renewable energy, water treatment, chemistry... In this sense, Garamendi highlighted the CEOE's support for Cemaes, a joint business organization. The Secretary of State for Commerce, for her part, offered the commercial office of Spain in Rabat as a point of support for Moroccan businessmen. It is the economic embodiment of the recomposition of relations.
