Morocco

Morocco’s internet penetration rate is at 88%, with most people having access to a mobile phone.

Morocco has introduced an updated payments regulation and is working on an Open Banking framework.

Morocco is aware its 2009 data protection legislation needs to be updated to fall in line with the EU if they wish to continue trading in some areas.

44% of adults in Morocco had bank accounts in 2021, leaving 56% unbanked.

The country’s leading banks are amongst the largest in Africa. The Ministry of the Economy, Finance and Administrative Reform and Bank Al-Maghrib are looking at better financial inclusion, with a gender gap of 25%. In 2020, the King announced that loans in Morocco would be preferentially directed towards owners of SMEs who were younger, female or in more rural areas.

In 2019, the mobile payment system Inwi Money was launched. In 2010, to reach more financially excluded, the Al – Barid bank was launched, which made use of the expanding postal network to create branches. 

Morocco ranked 89th out of 134 countries in Wiley’s Digital Skills Global Index 2021.