Souss-Massa Launches ‘Back to Business’: Accelerating Investment with Bold Strategies

To support the high-speed deployment of investment in the region, economic players in the Souss-Massa region came together for the 1st edition of Back to Business to make this economic return a year of acceleration for investment. And this, by adopting a more aggressive approach to attract more investment.

With an unemployment rate exceeding the national average, i.e. 13.5% in the Souss-Massa region, only private investment can drive economic activity upwards in this territory occupying a median position as the 6th wealth-creating region at the national level, accounting for 6.2% of the national GDP.

A bet for the future at the heart of which is not only the absorption of the unemployment rate and the improvement of the employment and activity rate, but also the upstream promotion of investment, hence the initiation by the Souss-Massa Regional Investment Center (CRI) of the 1st edition of Back to Business, last Friday, in Agadir.

An event that will be transformed into an annual meeting according to Kenza Gassib, director of the CRI Souss-Massa, in order to promote the attractiveness of the region and its investment opportunities, in particular the regional offer and the potential for economic growth offered by this territory which has already started its industrialization process thanks to the regional version of Industrial Acceleration of the PAI (the first region to have benefited from this version of the PAI).

“It is essential to pay more attention to prospecting and identifying projects that create added value in order to adopt a more aggressive approach because the region is in competition with other territories and destinations. The aim is to attract more investment into more attractive growth niches and emerging sectors,” insisted Saaïd Amzazi, Wali of the Souss-Massa region, who highlighted the region’s achievements and the role of the CRI as a key player in promoting investment and regional development, especially within the framework of the new investment charter.

An ecosystem favorable to industrial investment

“This new incentive framework has already allowed and will allow our region to guide investments towards the priority sectors of our economy and to resolve territorial disparities between provinces and prefectures,” added Saaïd Amzazi.

Emphasizing the development of the region through the PDR, in particular the consolidation of reception and connection infrastructures, Karim Achengli, president of the Souss-Massa Regional Council, affirmed that the region is working tirelessly to build an ecosystem favorable to industrial investment.

“We have put in place concrete incentives to accompany and support investors. This includes support for the acquisition of industrial land, essential for launching large-scale projects, as well as specific measures to promote job creation in the industrial sector. Our objective is clear: to make Souss-Massa an attractive region, capable of offering real and tangible opportunities to those who wish to set up there,” said the president of the region.

At the same time, the Regional Council has developed subsidy mechanisms to support the booming aquaculture sector, as well as programs dedicated to tourism development.

“Today, there are many opportunities: whether through our industrial acceleration zone or initiatives aimed at strengthening regional economic dynamics. Our ambition is not limited to infrastructure. We have a vision, that of an inclusive, resilient, and forward-looking region to make Souss-Massa a model of regional development,” insisted Karim Achengli.

A regional framework that encourages investment in Souss-Massa

Emphasizing seven reasons to invest in the region, namely the abundance of natural resources, the presence of qualified and competitive human capital, an infrastructure offer, the connectivity of the region, the incentive framework, the business climate and the attractiveness of the region, Kenza Gassib, director of the CRI Souss-Massa, recalled the eligibility criteria within the framework of the new investment charter. These are the bonuses granted (sectoral bonus, territorial bonus and the five common bonuses), but also, the projects of a strategic nature.

At the same time, the CRI director highlighted the regional incentive framework with an initial budget envelope of 100 MDH allocated to this component via the support subsidy for the acquisition of industrial land up to 250 DH per square meter within the limit of 1 hectare, the employment bonus between 5,000 DH and 10,000 DH per job created, depending on the total investment amount and the number of stable jobs created. Added to this is the subsidy for the acquisition of industrial equipment set at 20% of the amount committed by the investor, according to the three ceilings.

“The CRI is committed to promoting the attractiveness of the region and its assets in terms of investment and initiatives that promote economic development,” explained Kenza Gassib from the outset during her speech.

In addition, a series of presentations were made during this event by regional operators, including the land offer through focuses on the industrial acceleration zone by Medz and the region’s industrial parks by Al Omrane. Added to this are the eligibility criteria for accessing the benefits of the ZAI by the Foreign Exchange Office, and the maritime connection and its prospects by the ANP and the CGEM as well as logistics solutions, especially with the Ait-Melloul logistics zone.

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(Featured image by ar130405 via Pixabay)

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First published in LES ECO.ma. A third-party contributor translated and adapted the article from the original. In case of discrepancy, the original will prevail.

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