Ali El Alaoui Secretary General CMPE

Morocco’s export industries are deepening their traditional strengths and spreading into new sectors. From the kingdom’s traditional markets of France, Spain, other European countries, and the Middle East, the Centre Marocain de Promotion des Exportations (CPME, Moroccan Export Promotion Center) is helping Moroccan firms branch out. The U.S. market, now opened even wider by the U.S.-Morocco Free Trade Agreement, is bringing new attention to Morocco’s opportunities for American business.

One of the first and most important export obstacles to overcome was the problem of Morocco’s image in America. “We found there was an ‘image deficit’, or the lack of an image,” says CPME Secretary-General Ali El Alaoui. “When people did have an image of Morocco, it was wrong. People thought of sand, the desert, camels, beaches, or generally the idea of a third-world country.” Overcoming this meant raising Morocco’s profile among American consumers and importers, and encouraging Moroccan firms to recognize and publicize their strength in textiles, leather and agricultural products.

When it came time to take steps to correct the view of Morocco held by American business, the CPME reached out to American buyers with an increased presence at key trade shows. “We started in 1997 and 1998 with the textile sector, the spearhead of the Moroccan economy,” says Mr. El Alaoui, by dramatically increasing Moroccan participation and information activities at textile and leather trade fairs. The extremely low costs of production in Asia meant that Morocco could not compete on cost, so the country’s industries have had to compete on quality. Mr. El Alaoui works to convince Moroccan producers that their core strength, built through decades of successful competition in European markets, is in high-end goods. “We always held that in our very industrial structure, Morocco was positioned at the high end of the market where we do very, very well.”

Nobody makes Moroccan food quite like Moroccans do, and Americans’ growing familiarity with Moroccan cuisine makes agricultural products an important growth sector in trade between the two countries. Agro-industrial products like couscous, sardines, vegetable preserves, and olive oil have long been Morocco’s calling card in international markets. Increasing the market share requires that Moroccan firms distinctively and creatively present their products as the “real thing,” which has been a focus for the CPME according to Mr. El Alaoui. “We started pressuring Moroccan firms to bring their product up to a higher level, and to improve their packaging, in order to engage with the American market,” he explains.

Increasing Morocco’s presence in American markets means increasing the kingdom’s profile in American minds. With the high-end, high-quality focus of Moroccan export products, and its unique artisanal goods, Morocco’s brand and history are crucial assets in creating a sense of authenticity and distinction in its products. “Americans have to know Morocco, that’s my top priority,” says Mr. El Alaoui. “I tell people that we are simultaneously in Africa, we’re among the Arab countries, we’re in Europe; we’re actually a crossroads.” He also believes that Moroccan firms will have to deepen their knowledge of the complex American context to respond to the market and compete there. “I can’t speak of ‘a market’ but ‘many markets’, because the U.S. market is really 54 markets.”

The U.S.-Morocco Free Trade Agreement was a high-priority initiative for President George Bush and King Mohammed VI. The resulting increase in bilateral trade adds to the benefits of Morocco’s recent push for economic liberalization. Mr. El Alaoui believes that Morocco’s position as a fulcrum between Europe, Africa and the Arab world makes it a strategic location for American business that are aware of the country’s potential. “We can be, first of all, a supplier of high-end products to the American market. But we can also be a platform for American investment, to reach out a market that isn’t just 30 million Moroccans but a billion consumers.”