First Independent Mena Newspaper
A proposal by the Rassemblement national des independants (RNI) to introduce a tax credit of up to 5,000 dirhams per year per child for private school fees has reignited a fundamental debate in Moroccan economic policy: when the state transfers money to consumers, does it strengthen their purchasing power or merely give producers the ability […]
Moroccan remittances from abroad exceeded 122 billion dirhams in 2025 and are projected to approach 128 billion dirhams in 2026, representing close to 8.5 percent of GDP and one of the country’s primary sources of foreign exchange. Yet this formidable financial flow conceals a persistent structural limitation: the vast majority of diaspora funds continue to […]
The International Monetary Fund warned Algeria that its economy is weakening, urging authorities to tighten fiscal policy, avoid printing money to finance government deficits and stand ready to tighten monetary policy if inflation persists. The unusually stark warning came in the IMF’s 2026 Article IV consultation, which said rising oil and gas prices were helping […]
The U.S. Department of Commerce has ordered 72.94 % countervailing duty (CVD) against imports of steel concrete reinforcing bar from Algeria. The new tariffs are enforced as of July 6, 2026, alongside the triple-digit antidumping duties issued earlier this year. The new CVD decision, published in the U.S. Federal Register, comes after the investigations initiated […]
Morocco’s economic geography is undergoing a quiet but significant transformation, according to the editorialist of Aujourd’hui le Maroc. The latest meeting of the National Investment Commission revealed that approved projects are now being located in provinces such as Al Haouz, El Jadida, Moulay Yacoub, Nador, Rehamna and Taroudant — territories not traditionally associated with major […]
Morocco’s Direction générale des impôts (DGI) generated a record 20.93 billion dirhams in additional revenues from tax control and regularization operations in 2025, an 18 percent increase on the prior year, as the administration advanced what it describes as a fundamental shift in fiscal doctrine. Rather than using audit activity as a quick budgetary lever, […]
The African Development Bank (AfDB) has significantly increased its financial commitments to Mauritania, with its investment portfolio rising from $147 million to $659 million over the past three years. The $512 million expansion reflects a more than fourfold increase in support and underscores a deepening partnership between the AfDB and Mauritania. The funding is directed […]
Tunisia’s summer festival season is under threat after organizers said they could no longer obtain the foreign currency needed to pay international performers, raising the prospect of last-minute cancellations and contractual disputes. Lawyer Ahmed Ben Hassana told Tunisian outlet Webdo.tn that the commission overseeing foreign artists and the Ministry of Cultural Affairs were taken by […]
Morocco is embarking on a structural reform of its public budgeting process, introducing a formal system for identifying and tracking the environmental impact of government expenditure. The initiative, known as Climate Budget Labelling (Etiquetage climatique du budget, ECB), was formally launched by Prime Minister’s Circular No. 6/2026 of 23 April 2026 and will be applied […]
The World Bank has approved $265 million to support construction of a new pumped hydropower storage plant in northern Morocco. This clean energy project, one of the landmark infrastructures in Africa, will provide affordable electricity, improve the resilience of the national grid and create jobs. The Ifahsa Pumped Hydropower Storage Project is designed to strengthen […]