Regional development and efficiency in Morocco: an empirical analysis

Abstract

The advanced regionalization project in Morocco essentially aims to achieve integrated and sustainable territorial development and the reduction of regional disparities. For several years, the State, public establishments and local authorities have implemented economic and social policies and programs in all regions of Morocco aimed primarily at the creation of wealth, the reduction of poverty and inequalities and improving youth employability. In this sense, the objective of this paper is to measure the level of efficiency of Moroccan regions in the use of socio-economic factors to promote regional development. The data envelopment analysis (DEA) method was used to analyze the efficiency of the regions between 2001 and 2017 and the Malmquist index to study the factors of production. The results show that the level of efficiency of Moroccan regions is around the efficiency frontier but without remarkable progress in terms of productivity between the two periods. Changing this situation requires implementing territorial policies adapted to the development needs of each region, improving the efficient management of resources and seizing the unprecedented opportunities of technological progress to generate productivity gains.

Keywords: Efficiency, regional development, Morocco  

JEL Classification: C67, P25, R13

Paper type: Empirical research