Marrakesh- Alibaba, the world leader in the field of online commerce, announced the official launch of its platform in the Moroccan market, during a ceremony to sign a memorandum of understanding held in Casablanca on December 18, organized by the Moroccan Confederation of Exporters (a professional organization) in partnership with… With the Moroccan Agency for the Development of Investments and Exports (public).
Alibaba is considered the largest platform for business-to-business trade in the world, with 47 million active users from companies in 200 countries, and is considered a leader in this field, while the value of the global market for this type of business is estimated at about 23.9 trillion dollars.
During the meeting, Alberto Frescura, official at Alibaba and Director of Strategic Partnerships and Business Development in Europe, highlighted the importance of supporting Moroccan companies in the field of digital export and enhancing Morocco’s position on the international scene.
He added that Morocco’s strategic location and advanced infrastructure, such as the Tangier Med Port, the largest container port in the Mediterranean region, play an important role in attracting investment and global trade.
According to data presented during this meeting, more than 60% of Morocco’s exports are sold to the European Union market, while the Kingdom also seeks to expand export destinations to other countries outside it.
New markets
In turn, the President of the Moroccan Confederation of Exporters, Hassan Al-Santisi Al-Idrissi, told Al Jazeera Net that this partnership is in line with the national strategy to make Morocco a regional and African center, which seeks to raise its competitive and innovative capacity, and promote the slogan “Made in Morocco.”
He added that electronic (digital) commerce now represents approximately 22% of global trade, a number that is constantly increasing, which demonstrates its growing role in international trade, highlighting that this structural transformation for Morocco provides a unique opportunity to accelerate its transition to the digital economy and enhance its presence in global markets.
He pointed out the commitment of both parties to facilitating the access of Moroccan exporters to international markets, increasing the visibility of Moroccan products in strategic regions, and promoting balanced and sustainable exchanges between economic actors.
Morocco is the third African country after Rwanda (2018) and Ethiopia (2019) in which Alibaba decided to strengthen its presence and expand its activity, but it adopted a fixed subscription model for Moroccan companies on its platform, regardless of the size of profits.
According to an international study seen by Al Jazeera Net, the Alibaba platform chooses to launch its platforms in countries that are promising in the field of e-commerce, in different regions of the world, which are characterized by the diversity of industries and the quality of products.
The study highlights that Alibaba’s strategy is consistent with the commercial ambitions of these countries, taking into account the social and economic conditions, public policies, and characteristics conducive to the development of logistics services and digital trade.
Noticeable growth
E-commerce in Morocco is witnessing significant growth of approximately 30% annually, according to what was revealed by the Minister of Industry and Trade, Riad Mazour, during his passage in the Moroccan Parliament, indicating that in the Kingdom it represents between 6% and 8% of the total commercial activity, expecting that the size of the e-commerce market will reach in the Kingdom to more than $3 billion by 2024.
The minister highlighted that Morocco has more than 100 emerging companies in the e-commerce sector with locally developed technology, which is expected to increase 10 times over the next few years, and which can also target international markets.
According to the “Statista” platform, Morocco is among the countries most connected to the Internet at a rate of 91%, and the data shows that the number of industry transactions related to e-commerce in the Kingdom reached 1.6 billion dollars in 2024, and is expected to reach 2.6 billion in 2029, with a growth rate of 63.11%.
Economic analyst Badr Zaher Al-Azraq confirms – in an interview with Al Jazeera Net – that opening new markets will create dynamism in multiple fields, especially the service sectors and modern and traditional industries, in addition to other sectors that produce Moroccan goods capable of competing internationally, which will help the Kingdom to become a leader in the field of export.
Risks
Azraq adds that this partnership is an opportunity for Moroccan companies to develop their capabilities in vital areas such as management, cash transaction mechanisms, and electronic transactions, which contributes to advancing their development and accelerating their growth.
For his part, President of the Moroccan Confederation of Small, Small and Medium Enterprises, Abdullah Al-Farki – in an interview with Al Jazeera Net – hopes that this step will open new horizons for strategic sectors such as textiles, handicrafts, food industries, cosmetics, logistics and information and communications technology, whose exports have achieved profitable rates. Mission for the year 2023 (textile: 41.3 billion dirhams, which is about 4.1 billion dollars; manufactured clothing: 29.5 billion dirhams, which is approximately 2.9 billion dollars).
Al-Farki says that more than 50% of very small, small and medium-sized companies, which constitute more than 98.4% of all companies in Morocco, actually suffer from weakness in the face of international e-commerce competition in the absence of government support and even dialogue with it.
In turn, the Blue Economic Analyst points out that linking to international markets carries promising opportunities, but it also entails risks, as the problem of geostrategic tensions, exchange rate fluctuations, and inflation may lead to fluctuations and a decline in the performance of these markets, which may negatively affect the performance of some sectors in Morocco.
Role of government
Azraq asks about the readiness of Moroccan companies, especially those that still rely on traditional methods, calling on the government to keep pace and develop these companies and enable them to engage in this new trend.
For his part, the President of the Moroccan Confederation of Exporters stresses the necessity of training and supporting companies in their digital transformation, with a special focus on small and medium-sized companies, and establishing a fund dedicated to digital transformation to finance the adoption of digital technologies by these small companies, enhancing cybersecurity, and spreading communication infrastructure in rural areas. and remote, developing strategic data analysis tools to help companies better target their markets and anticipate trends.
The Ministry of Industry and Trade confirms – in the report of the outcome and work program for the year 2025 – that it is keeping pace with emerging companies within the framework of activating the national platform for the digitization of trade, by launching 5 programs that resulted in supporting 84 emerging companies until September 2024.
The Ministry explained that the total number of startup companies that have benefited from the platform’s support – since its launch in 2021 – has reached about 118 companies, with an aim to reach 150 units by the end of the current year.
