(FR) The informal sector in Morocco

May 12, 2026

Cet épisode analyse le poids du secteur informel dans l’économie marocaine et ses principaux défis. Les intervenants expliquent que l’informel constitue à la fois un mécanisme de survie pour une grande partie de la population et un frein à la productivité, à la fiscalité et à la protection sociale. Ils montrent également que la formalisation dépend surtout des incitations économiques, fiscales et sociales mises en place par l’État.

Speakers
Hamza Saoudi
Senior Economist
Hamza Saoudi is a Senior Economist at the Policy Center for the New South (PCNS).At the PCNS, Hamza Saoudi conducts research on labor market dynamics, social protection systems, and inclusive growth, with a particular focus on Morocco and Africa. He is also interested in macroeconomic stabilization policies, international trade, and long-term economic development.He has contributed to PCNS projects and publications addressing informality, social protection, and inequality in developing economies.He also served as the project coordinator of the Oxford Handbook of the Moroccan Economy, published by Oxford University Press in 2026.Before joining the PCNS in 2017, Hamza Saoudi contributed to the development of quantitative models for bank credit risk management.Hamza Saoudi holds ...
Adnane Lahzaoui
Economist
« Adnane Lahzaoui is an economist at the Policy Center for the New South (PCNS), which he joined in august 2023. His work focuses on economic growth and labor market dynamics, with an interest in broader socio-economic issues.Mr. Lahzaoui holds a dual master’s degree in International Economics and Development from Paris Dauphine University – PSL and in Development Economics from Faculty of Governance, Economic, and Social Sciences at Mohammed VI Polytechnic University» ...
Sabrine Emran
Senior Economist
Sabrine Emran is a Senior Economist at the Policy Center for the New South (PCNS).At the PCNS, Sabrine Emran conducts research on the Energy Transition, Climate Finance, and Critical Minerals, focusing on the energy priorities of developing countries in the context of sustainable development, just energy transition, and global climate commitments.Before joining the PCNS in 2022, Sabrine Emran worked as a Commodities Analyst and Risk Management Consultant, specializing in agricultural and energy commodities as well as foreign exchange risk. She also held a position at Lyxor Asset Management as Request for Proposal and Product Specialist, where she focused on alternative investment asset classes and collaborated closely with institutional investors.Sabrine Emran holds a master’s ...

RELATED CONTENT

  • Authors
    December 2, 2025
    This paper assesses the economic and environmental implications of Morocco’s strategic transition from internal combustion engine vehicle (ICEV) manufacturing to electric vehicle (EV) production, with a particular focus on the regional impacts of localizing high-value battery manufacturing. Using an interregional input-output model, extended with environmental satellite accounts, the study simulates a structural shock related to the wholesale substitution of ICEV-specific inputs wit ...
  • November 25, 2025
    This Policy Paper analyses the Fourth Industrial Revolution (4IR) through the critical lens of technological colonialism. It argues that the fusion of physical, digital, and biological technologies is not merely a technical phenomenon but a civilizational shift reshaping the foundations of global power. The article traces a historical continuum from previous industrial revolutions, demonstrating how patterns of inequality and extraction persist, now transposed into the digital realm ...
  • Authors
    Jean Louis-Sarbib
    October 18, 2023
    Addressing inequalities in all their forms has emerged as one of the major global challenges faced by numerous countries across the globe, particularly in Africa. In a context where Africa faces many pressing challenges that are the subject of much analysis (Sarbib et al. 2022), there is a clear gap in conducting comprehensive reviews focused on inequalities, partly due to the lack of available data. Inequalities, which are both consequences and partial causes of poor development o ...
  • August 29, 2023
    In this conversation, Ms. Lina Khatib, the Director of SOAS University's Middle East Institute, delves deep into pressing regional issues. She highlights what policymakers can do to ensure the equitable distribution of economic development benefits and prevent any regression. Khatib als...
  • August 28, 2023
    Le secteur informel joue un rôle crucial dans le développement économique et social du Maroc en tant que filet de sécurité pour de nombreux travailleurs. Cependant, sa concentration dans de petites entreprises qui manquent de moyens de production sophistiqués peut entraver la croissance...
  • July 18, 2023
    Le secteur informel est une composante essentielle de l'économie marocaine, employant une large partie de la population, mais nuisant à la productivité, aux recettes fiscales de l’État et à la croissance économique à long terme. Sur la base de la définition adoptée dans cette étude et qui définit les travailleurs informels comme étant ceux qui ne sont pas couverts par les régimes contributifs de sécurité sociale de la Caisse nationale de sécurité sociale (CNSS) et d ...
  • Authors
    Gladys Lopez-Acevedo
    Marco Ranzani
    Nistha Sinha
    Adam Elsheikh
    June 23, 2023
    This report was originally published on openknowledge.worldbank.org The long-standing informality debate in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) Region has taken on a new urgency as it looks for a pathway to more socially inclusive growth that is less reliant on fossil fuels. This is occurring against a backdrop of subpar labor market outcomes, further growth setbacks, and deteriorating fiscal and current account de ficits in the aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic—and in the wak ...
  • June 13, 2023
    يعد ميثاق الاستثمار الجديد، الصادر، في دجنبر 2022، والذي تم تطبيق أول مراسيمه، في يناير المنصرم، خارطة الطريق الإستراتيجية لإعطاء نفس جديد للاستثمار بالمغرب، الذي من شأنه أن يعزز تنافسية ...
  • Authors
    Inácio F. Araújo
    May 5, 2023
    This paper presents a synthetic view of the socioeconomic and environmental impacts of the economic sectors and regions that make up the Moroccan economy, taking into account the current economic structure and production technologies. Therefore, the potential effects must be understood as signals to think about interventions aimed at redirecting the desired trajectories of sustainable development. The application of the tools developed to give scientific support to this analysis rev ...