Business Headlines Maghreb Morocco

Morocco to spend $200 mln on medical equipment to counter covid-19

Morocco will buy ventilators, intensive care beds and laboratory equipment worth $200 million as the country struggles to contain the spread of the virus, the finance ministry said. Morocco is buying 1000 intensive care beds, 550 ventilators, 100,000 testing kits, 100,000 collection kits, imaging and scanning devices, pharmaceutical products and other equipment key to treating […]

Europe Finance Headlines International Morocco

EU to redirect €450 mln to support Morocco’s response to Covid-19

The EU will redirect €450 million promised to Morocco this year to help the country better respond to the coronavirus outbreak.   The amount includes €150 million that will be injected directly in the special fund created by Morocco to fund health system acquisitions and offset the social and economic repercussion of the pandemic, according […]

Africa Business Headlines International

Africa turns to mobile payments as a tool to curb COVID-19

As Covid-19 continues to spread in Africa, the continent is developing new habits to facilitate lives of people. Part of these new habits, Africa is using digital finance as a means to stem the spread of COVID-19. Governments and startups on the continent are implementing measures to shift a greater volume of payment transactions toward […]

Americas Finance Headlines International Morocco

US Grants Morocco $670,000 to cushion coronavirus blow

The United States government has granted Morocco $670,000 (6.6 millionDH) to respond to the outbreak of the novel coronavirus (COVID-19), announced the US embassy in Rabat.   The funds are provided by the Emergency Reserve Fund for Contagious Infections Diseases at the US Agency for International Development (USAID), said the embassy in a statement.   […]

Finance Headlines Morocco

Fitch Ratings: Morocco has Buffers against Pressure on its Finances due to Covid-19

Pressure exerted on Morocco’s current account deficit (CAD) and external finances have increased significantly due to the COVID-19 pandemic global shock, Fitch Ratings says. However, the North African country has buffers to manage increased pressures, including recently displayed willingness to adjust the flexibility of the exchange rate regime, adds the international rating agency. Disruptions to […]

Finance Headlines Maghreb Morocco

Covid-19: Morocco to start paying compensations to the unemployed

Moroccan pension fund CNSS will start distributing a monthly compensation to the people who lost their jobs due to the consequences of coronavirus. Since Morocco imposed a quarantine and banned all travel, many employees of the tourism sector, services and non-essential sectors lost their jobs or were unpaid. The economic monitoring committee said the people […]

Finance Headlines Morocco

Morocco freezes public sector hiring due to Covid-19

Head of the Moroccan government Saad Eddine El Otmani asked all public sector administrations to put off hiring new employees until the end of the coronavirus crisis. In a sign of austerity measures, El Otmani also ordered in a letter delaying all promotions planned in the current budget. The Prime minister said that the job […]

Business Headlines Morocco

Covid-19: Moroccan authorities to supervise donations in kind

To prevent the spread of the coronavirus and avoid any political exploitation of food donations, Moroccan authorities have decided to supervise this operation in order to maintain public order and protect the health of citizens. Thus, philanthropists wishing to make such donations should get in touch with local authorities in their regions to arrange for […]

Africa Finance Headlines International

African Finance Ministers Call for Coordinated COVID-19 Response

African Finance Ministers have called for a coordinated COVID-19 response to mitigate the adverse impact of the pandemic on economies and society, noting that Africa needs an immediate emergency economic stimulus of $100 billion. The ministers, who met on 19 March in a virtual conference to exchange ideas on the efforts of their respective governments […]

Business Europe Headlines International Morocco

Coronavirus: European shoppers rushing to buy Moroccan fruits & veggies

Following the disruptions caused by the coronavirus pandemic in agricultural production in Spain, Italy and Portugal, European shoppers are rushing to buy Moroccan fruits and vegetables, which have become hot commodities. Due to lack of farm workers in Spain, main supplier of the European market, demand has spiked in recent days for Moroccan agricultural products […]