Publications /
Policy Paper

Back
Measuring the Middle Class in the World and in Morocco
July 11, 2019

The rise of the middle class in the emerging economies is affecting significantly consumption habits and thus, transforming these economies. The size and growth of the middle class is of interest to gauge market potential for many products, and can serve as a barometer of political awareness. Measuring the Middle Class using income presents many challenges, beginning with finding an appropriate definition. Previous research by Ali and Dadush (2012) suggested an alternative measure, which can complement the studies based on household surveys: using cars in circulation. In the developing world, unlike in high income countries, buying a car is virtually synonymous with entry into the middle class. This paper updates the previous research conducted by Ali and Dadush using the most recent data, and also extends the analysis to a much larger sample of developing countries. The case of Morocco, a country where the middle class is growing rapidly and has rising expectations, is reviewed. While cars in circulation are certainly not a perfect measure of the rise of the middle class in developing countries, the measure points to an extraordinarily challenging period ahead for governments, especially in middle-income developing countries, such as Morocco. Governments will see their tax revenues grow, but demands on them will grow even more rapidly. At the same time, many companies will see wide new business horizons open to them.

RELATED CONTENT

  • Authors
    March 13, 2024
    Le 20 février 2024, le Policy Center for the New South et la Banque mondiale ont mis à profit  l’organisation d’un événement pour échanger sur les résultats d'une récente évaluation du partenariat entre le Royaume et l’institution de Bretton Woods . Cette rencontre a été l’occasion de revenir sur les accomplissements, les défis rencontrés et les opportunités à venir afin d’orienter la collaboration future entre les deux parties. Au cours des 15 dernières années, le Maroc et la Banq ...
  • February 20, 2024
    Le Policy Center for the New South et le Groupe d'évaluation indépendante (IEG) de la Banque mondiale organisent un évènement sous le thème «La Banque mondiale au Maroc : apprendre et s'adapter pour avoir un impact ». L'événement examine les conclusions d'une évaluation récente du sou...
  • Authors
    Ali Elguellab
    Elhadj Ezzahid
    February 12, 2024
    Dans ce rapport, nous proposons d’utiliser une nouvelle approche pour analyser les structures productives au Maroc. Nous appliquons les outils de la théorie des réseaux aux tableaux des échanges inter-industriels de l'économie marocaine. Nos résultats montrent que le réseau national de production présente des caractéristiques intuitives dans le sens qu’elles sont liées aux processus de production. La structure de ce réseau peut être représentée sous la forme d'un papillon, avec les ...
  • Authors
    Ilham Najib
    January 29, 2024
    Morocco is positioned as a new global hub of the automotive industry in an increasingly volatile international context, with various emerging countries competing intensively to gain the best returns on openness and globalization. The Moroccan automotive industry’s recent performance shows it to be the most dynamic sector in the economy: from 2014 to 2019, value-added in the automotive sector increased by almost 70% while the overall national value-added increased by only 15%. In the ...
  • Authors
    Soukaina Raoui
    January 22, 2024
      This Paper was originally published on bera-journals.onlinelibrary.wiley.com   As a specific driver for the transformation of education systems in Morocco, inclusive education is a process that aims to reduce the exclusion of children with disabilities. Indeed, few studies have analysed the exclusion factors that cause children with disabilities not to pursue their education. Based on this, the present paper explores the spatial effect of factors related to accessibility and sc ...
  • Authors
    Elhoussaine Wahyana
    January 12, 2024
    The debate on global value chains (GVCs) has emphasized countries’ contributions to value-added creation. From an intercountry perspective, a new body of research is addingto this debate by studying how subnational regions contribute to the indicators in specific countries. Proper assessment of economic contributions is essential for designing incentive policies. This paper analyzes the role played by the main trading partners of Moroccan regions in local value chains. We use input- ...
  • December 26, 2023
    في ختام هذا العام، يُخصص مركز السياسات من أجل الجنوب الجديد حلقة خاصة من برنامجه الأسبوعي"حديث الثلاثاء"، لاستعراض أبرز تطورات الاقتصادية خلال عام 2023. هذا العام شهد تحولات عديدة وتحديات غير اعتيادية ، فكيف أثرت هذه التغيرات على الاقتصادات العالمية؟ وما هو الدور الذي أضافته الجغرافيا ا...
  • December 5, 2023
    في حلقة هذا الأسبوع سنحاول مناقشة موضوع القطاع غير المُهيكَل في المغرب، أبرز التحديات وأفاق المستقبل. حيث أن ظاهرة العمالة غير الرسمية أصبحت تأخذ حيزا كبيرا في مختلف النقاشات العالمية الدائرة حول مسألة التنمية، والمغرب يعد من بين الدول التي تبقى فيها الظاهرة عند مستويات مرتفعة كون منظو...
  • November 28, 2023
    This Working Paper was originally published on erf.org.eg Like many developing countries, Morocco faced a significant increase in public debt following the COVID-19 pandemic. In 2022, Central government debt reached 69.6% of GDP, up from 60.3% in 2019, highlighting the need for a thorough analysis of debt sustainability. This paper examines the main trends in the Moroccan economy over the past two decades, including growth performance, monetary policy and financial conditions and e ...