also aims at promoting the sector towards youth, attracting them towards work and entrepreneurial activities in agriculture.
In line with the integration approach that has driven investments and innovation in the sector, Moroccan authorities have been developing agricultural production sites (agropôles) in some key regions, to strengthen upstream and downstream collaboration among relevant stakeholders and attract agri-food investments (including foreign investments). The creation of these Agropôles has created a bridge between agriculture and agri-food. Agropôles play an important role in the frame of the partnership with universities for transferring technologies.
Technological innovation, mainly related to improving efficiency, reducing costs and raising productivity levels has been increasing over the last ten years due to government measures such as Green Morocco Plan (Plan Maroc Vert). However, technology has yet to have a breakthrough effect in the Moroccan agri-food sector, and investment cost still represents a significant barrier for many smaller actors. Some innovations have been introduced in the past decade, mainly to cope with the climatic situation due both to droughts and to climate change.
Skills supply and demand in Moroccan agribusiness
There are structural weaknesses that remain to be addressed in the Moroccan labour market, including relatively low levels of human capital development and mismatches between the outputs of the education and training system and those required in the private sector; rigidities in the labour market which impede job creation and are seen to be a determinant of relatively high levels of youth
unemployment (bearing in mind the population is a relatively young one); and the persistence of a significant informal economy.
While many Moroccan graduates are unable to find jobs commensurate with their educational training, employers report skills shortages and mismatches. Industrial skills that could benefit the needs of growing sectors are not always prioritised, and skills that graduates acquire are often not transferrable to any real-world working environment, causing gaps between skills supply and demand (World Bank, 2020). Several enterprises report that candidates often have insufficient practical experience through internships or direct experiences in the workplace – particularly agronomists and agricultural
engineers.
Stakeholders identify a range of demand-side challenges relating to skills and human capital
development in Morocco’s rapidly-developing agri-food sector. Hiring people with the skills needed to adapt to technological change can prove difficult because of the relatively low attractiveness of the sector compared with positions in the public sector that require similar levels of skill, and a continued public-sector employment preference; many highly skilled workers (including engineers) leave the country to work abroad; and, in some regions, agri-food establishments are far from centres of
population. Equally, Moroccan agribusiness companies value soft skills: thus, the debate on future skill needs is not just about technical skills but the mix of technical and soft skills (ETF, 2020).
On the supply side, Morocco compares unfavourably with the EU on some key measures related to human capital development, with relatively low levels of educational attainment on exit from the education system which stymies the further development of human capital (ETF, 2020). A large share of the Moroccan active population did not complete compulsory education, accounting for around 6.480 million people in 2018. The share of people without a qualification is even higher among the self-employed, that represent more than 40 % of the employment in the agricultural sector in 2018 (La Tribune, 2020).
Inclusion
Creating more and better rural jobs is a priority for Morocco’s agricultural transformation. Morocco’s agricultural sector currently lies between the transition and urbanised agriculture stages in its
agricultural transformation process: as such, it has yet to reach its full export and production potential, which could further boost economic inclusion.
Identified deficits in terms of youth inclusion in the labour market include skills mismatch relative to labour demand and job supply, high levels of unemployment and underemployment. The extent and nature of these challenges differ significantly between rural and urban areas, between men and women and depending on education level. Overall, around one-quarter of Moroccan youth are not in any form of employment or education (GIZ, 2019).
Women’s labour force participation is limited and has decreased in recent years; according to modelled ILO estimates, only 21% of formal jobs are held by women, compared to 26% in 2004 (IFC, 2020).
Women in Morocco continue to face important barriers to labour market access and inclusion,
including social barriers and discrimination (OECD, 2020). A key issue is women’s lack of participation in private sector employment. Around half of formally employed women in Morocco are employed in the public sector, which is considered more socially acceptable and tends to be associated with higher job security, a safer work environment and a better fit with family duties (ILO and OECD, 2020).
Policy measures supporting inclusive skills for enterprise development in agribusiness
One of the main challenges facing the provision of TVET in Morocco is the high degree of fragmentation in the delivery of these programmes across agencies, ministries, and other entities and associations in the country. Different TVET pathways fall under the aegis of different government agencies,
governance and regulatory arrangements, quality control and certification mechanisms and are linked or articulated across these different systems of TVET provision (World Bank, 2020).
In recent years, the government has provided a range of measures to support higher agricultural
education and VET. The four public institutions providing higher agricultural education have coalesced into a polytechnic pole, with the aim of pooling resources and coordinate actions and curricula among themselves and with other relevant stakeholders (including VET providers), as well as operate with more transparency and rationality.
Stakeholders report that COVID-19 has boosted the use of digital solutions for distance learning. The OFPPT (Office de le Formation Professionnelle et de la Promotion du Travail) has recommended a model of hybrid education, where the theoretical part is carried out online and the practical part (up to 30 % of the students' time) is undertaken in person. For the next semester, the institute IAV Hassan II is preparing a platform for providing the courses entirely online.
The Moroccan agri-food industry has a range of institutions which coordinate actions around skills. INRA (Institut National de la Recherche Agronomique) and ONCA (Office National du Conseil Agricole) collaborate in developing joint skills development programmes. GIAC-AGRO (Groupement Interprofessionnel d’Aide au Conseil du secteur agroalimentaire) helps companies in defining strategies for skills and competences development. GIAC-AGRO was founded by eight food industry associations, and promote on-the-job training, educates businesses on the importance of skills development to improve competitiveness, and support business to apply for financial assistance for skills development. INRA provides consultancy regarding the quality issue for the product of the territory that is linked directly to the value-added transformation of products that the sector is pursuing.
Several enterprises, such as LCM, Cosumar and Huiles de Saiss reported collaborating with INRA on R&D projects.
References:
Agence Française de Développement (AFD), 2020, Maroc : https://www.afd.fr/fr/page-region-pays/maroc
Agri Maroc, 2020a, Génération Green, un nouveau départ pour l’agriculture au Maroc:
https://www.agrimaroc.ma/generation-green-agriculture-maroc/
Agri Maroc, 2020b, Le Maroc oeuvre pour l’émergence de la classe moyenne rurale via l’activité Agricole: https://www.agrimaroc.ma/maroc-classe-rurale-agricole/
British Chamber of Commerce in Morocco (BritCham), 2020, L’AGRO-INDUSTRIE MAROCAINE:
Impact et plan de relance : https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fcrVbT5z6rc
European Commission (EC) - Délégation de l’Union européenne au Maroc, 2020, Note sur les impacts économiques du Covid-19 au Maroc :
https://www.awex-export.be/files/library/Fiches-Pays/AFPMO/Maroc/Impacts-e-conomiques-du-Covid-19-au-Maroc-au-26-03-2020.pdf
ETF, 2020, The future of skills: Case study of the agri-food sector in Morocco.
GIZ, 2019, Morocco: Employment through Green Jobs: https://www.giz.de/en/downloads/giz2019-en-mena-morocco.pdf
Haut-Commissariat au Plan du Maroc (HCP), 2020, Situation du marché du travail au premier trimestre de 2020: https://www.hcp.ma/La-situation-du-marche-du-travail-au-premier-trimestre-de-2020_a2503
HCP, 2020b, Activité, emploi et chômage (Principaux indicateurs):
https://www.hcp.ma/downloads/Activite-emploi-et-chomage-Principaux-indicateurs_t21667.html IFC, 2019, Creating markets in Morocco: Country private sector diagnostic:
https://www.ifc.org/wps/wcm/connect/d0c0f18c-26b7-4861-b4c5-14896aaba7f1/201910-CPSD-Morocco-EN.pdf?MOD=AJPERES&CVID=m-LGA3X.
IFC, 2020. Promouvoir l’emploi et l’employabilité des femmes au Maroc: la CGEM et l’IFC font cause commune: https://pressroom.ifc.org/All/Pages/PressDetail.aspx?ID=26086
ILO and OECD, 2020, Changing Laws and Breaking Barriers for Women’s Economic Empowerment in Egypt, Jordan, Morocco and Tunisia: https://www.ilo.org/wcmsp5/groups/public/---africa/---ro-abidjan/---sro-cairo/documents/publication/wcms_760505.pdf
La Tribune, 2019, Marché de travail marocain : Plus de 59% de salariés sans contrat, selon le HCP : https://lnt.ma/marche-de-travail-marocain-plus-de-59-de-salaries-contrat-selon-hcp/
OECD, 2020, COVID-19 crisis in the MENA region: impact on gender equality and policy responses:
https://www.oecd.org/coronavirus/policy-responses/covid-19-crisis-in-the-mena-region-impact-on-gender-equality-and-policy-responses-ee4cd4f4/#endnotea0z7
World Bank, 2020, Skills development for employment: The role of technical and vocational education and training: http://documents1.worldbank.org/curated/en/919151593565793405/pdf/Morocco-Skills-Development-for-Employment-The-Role-of-Technical-and-Vocational-Education-and-Training.pdf.