Morocco as emerging regional economic power?

Abstract

North Africa has been through significant political and economic changes recently. As the third-largest economy in the region (after Egypt and Algeria), Morocco has emerged as a steadily growing economy with a relatively stable political system which under the current circumstances in the region has the opportunity to become a potentially new regional economic power. This article aims to explore the areas in which the country has already gained dominance over its competitors and the areas in which it still lags behind. The article carries out a comparative analysis of selected key indicators of all North African countries over the last five years (2013-2017). The results show that Morocco began dominating the region mainly in foreign direct investment outflows and the export of services. In other areas, it still lags behind, but the rate of recent changes urges scholars to follow its development more closely, as the country may be a newly-rising regional economic power.