Determinants of entrepreneurial success in times of health and economic crisis: The case of SMEs in the Rabat-Salé-Kénitra region

Abstract

SMEs are the backbone of any economy (Eggers, 2020). Thus, when the COVID-19 pandemic emerged, the entire economy was put at risk and SMEs were hit hard.

The first figures seem to be alarming, but the prospects for emerging from this vortex remain optimistic. At the end of 2020, more than 95% of Moroccan SMEs have been able to maintain their activity (HCP, 2021), many of which have shown resilience and agility and have been able to overcome the devastating effects of the crisis.

Our research aims, then, to study the key determinants explaining the success of Moroccan SMEs in times of health and economic crisis COVID-19 by focusing on three main dimensions: the environment, the entrepreneur and the resources mobilized.

To this end, we conducted a qualitative study through individual semi-directive interviews with a simple random sample of 20 entrepreneurs operating in the Rabat-Salé-Kenitra region.

The results obtained showed that although the Moroccan government has developed a wide range of support measures for SMEs, the majority of the entrepreneurs considered that the success of their business is mainly due to endogenous factors related to their commitment, their motivation and the resources at their disposal, and secondarily, to exogenous factors related to the characteristics of the context and the opportunities offered by the environment in which they operate.

JEL Classification : H12, P47, F64.

Paper type: Empirical research.