What Even is a Tiger Economy?
In the second half of the 20th century a cohort of East Asian countries managed to transform from underdeveloped agrarian societies into advanced financial and manufacturing hubs. This rapid growth was ignited by sustained industrialisation, exceptionally high growth rates, and heavy state-led capital expenditure. Countries such as South Korea quickly closed the gap with the West, devising a new model for developing nations to climb the global economic hierarchy.
This explosive growth coupled with an impressive rise in the standards of living within these countries earned them the title of “tiger economies”. Africa has rarely moved into the limelight in this story, due to stable, sustained industrialisation being a rarity on the continent. Yet,
in the volatile deserts of North Africa is an oasis of stability,
as Morocco has silently transformed from an agrarian economy, with an almost non-existent road network and a $5 billion manufacturing output in 1990, to Africa’s largest automobile exporter with a 2000km long highway network catering to the continent’s largest port, and opening the continent’s first high speed rail line.
The Moroccan Growth Story
Morocco’s rise to prominence began with the adoption of the Structural Adoption Plans between 1983 to 1992, which introduced four major economic reforms: First, restore the main macroeconomic balances. Second, improve and diversify manufacturing. Third, build a competitive and productive private sector with a gradual shift of economic management being taken up by private firms instead of state-owned enterprises. Fourth, support the private sector to develop and lead the nation’s economy through liberalisation in new sectors. While similar objectives were set by several developing nations, it is the subsequent policy focus on setting incentives, infrastructure building, and workforce development that kickstarted Rabat’s growth story with the country maintaining an average real GDP growth rate of almost 5% in this period.
The 1996 association agreement with the European Union was a game changer in preparing the country for export-oriented growth, initiating the first investment boom which witnessed almost $3 billion in Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) between 1997 to 2003. Between 1990 and 2024, FDI reached $55 billion, making it a low-risk, attractive, and reliable destination in Africa, where factories can operate without disruption. This was the result of years of coordinated state policy, beginning with the reign of King Mohammed IV in 1999, whose parliamentary reforms staved off the country from the revolutions of the Arab Spring, while also maintaining policy continuity through the National Pact for Industrial Emergence (2009–2014), Industrial Acceleration Plan I (2014–2020) and the Industrial Acceleration Plan II (2020–2025).
Setting Morocco apart from its African neighbours was its steadfastness in directly partnering with private players to establish functioning industrial zones, offering tax exemptions, and building industrial training centres catering to the specific needs of each targeted sector. Renault created a dedicated automotive training centre in Tangier, while Boeing supported the establishment of the Institute of Aeronautical Trades in Casablanca, building a workforce well-versed in assembly line management, quality control, engine components, and aircraft interiors. This guaranteed the success of the “Tangier Free Zone” in 1999, becoming the kingdom’s first industrial cluster, attracting 500 companies and $670 million in investment over time. Some kilometres away is the “Tangier Automotive City” and the “Midparc Industrial Zone”. Opened in 2013, the former is home to 150 companies specialising in vehicle assembly and component production, while the latter is a high precision cluster for aerospace manufacturing. These zones sit just miles away from Africa’s largest port: Tangier Med, which is less than three days away from Europe’s largest ports.
In unison these zones, among 150 others, function like industrial cities with training centres, supplier workshops, cold storages, and customs offices sitting beside these clusters, while a specialised infrastructure network of highways and rail lines run directly into ports, allowing companies to enjoy low operating costs, simplified regulations, and space to scale faster and cheaper than in any other competing African country. Morocco’s trade architecture boasts Free Trade Agreements with the US, the UAE, and Turkey, as well as other allied investments, such as the Al-Boraq high speed rail network, opened in 2018 to connect the industrial hubs of Tangier and Casablanca. It marks Africa’s first and only high speed rail network.
Morocco: The EU’s China+1?
Morocco’s excellence in component production, logistics, assembly, and a broad manufacturing base producing everything from fertilisers to planes makes it the ideal partner for the EU’s nearshoring strategy and its “Gateway to Africa”. Sitting just 14km from Spain’s coast, Morocco provides an advantage distant partners like China and South East Asia cannot provide to the EU. It brings extremely short and safe supply lines that aren’t at risk of being tariffed by the US or being blockaded by Iran. Neither does it face the geopolitical risk that comes with Beijing. Furthermore, Morocco’s recent ratification of the African Continental Free Trade Agreement gives firms preferential access across 54 African countries, making it the ideal testing ground or base of operations for companies prior to engaging in continent-wide expansion. Despite this, it is vital to inspect the hurdles the kingdom has to overcome in order to sustain this rapid industrial development.
The country has built world class ports, factories, and transportation yet faces the stubborn contradiction of unemployment standing at almost 13% in 2025. This showcases a gap between modernisation and inclusion as the gains of growth have been unevenly distributed with most FDI and high value jobs concentrated in the industrial corridors while inland regions lag behind. If left neglected, this discrepancy could fester into a sharp urban-rural divide, creating a two speed economy that prevents the country from making the leap to a prosperous and innovative economy like its East Asian role models. Although Morocco is undeniably a trailblazer in African industrialisation, the real test moving forward lies in turning that success into broad-based employment and ascending into more value-adding service sector industries. As any traveller in the desert knows, precious is an oasis for it could vanish in a single season.
Written by Chethan Shajan, Edited by Leo Hirnschrodt
Photo Credit: “Weisses und braunes Boot tagsuber auf See” by Michael Descharles (2020, February 25) on Unsplash.
