National Urban Policy Review of Morocco

1. Main findings and roadmap

Main findings

Morocco has experienced rapid urbanisation in recent decades

Over the past decades, Morocco has experienced rapid urbanisation. In 1975, 38.0% of the Moroccan population lived in cities, a figure that increased to 65.2% in 2024 and is expected to reach 67.8% by 2030. This predominance of the urban population in Morocco is also confirmed by OECD estimates based on the degree of urbanisation, a concept jointly developed by the OECD and the European Commission. According to these estimates for 2015 (the latest available year), more than 50% of Morocco's population lives in cities of more than 50 000 inhabitants, with 22% living in smaller cities and suburbs – proportions similar to those observed in the United States or Australia.

Morocco’s urbanisation is characterised by a coastal concentration of cities, with the formation of a few large coastal cities and a network of many small and medium-sized towns inland. Among the 58 functional urban areas (FUAs) identified in Morocco (based on the OECD/EU methodology, which encompasses the economic and functional extent of cities based on daily people’s movements), more than three-quarters have fewer than 250 000 inhabitants. This distribution of Moroccan cities by size is similar to the one observed in Spain, Poland, or Colombia.

Since 1975, the demographic growth of Moroccan cities has been accompanied by even greater expansion of their built-up areas. Over the past forty years, the built-up area in Moroccan cities has increased by an average of 174%, compared to a 157% rise in the urban population. However, this gap is smaller than that observed in OECD countries (17 percentage points in Morocco, compared to an average of 68 percentage points in OECD countries).

Cities are the main drivers of Morocco's economy, but they could further gain from agglomeration benefits and promote greater inclusion

Cities play a central role in Morocco's economy, generating 80% of productive activity and 75% of jobs. The Casablanca-Settat region, which is predominantly urban, alone accounts for one-third of national GDP, while it is home to 25% of the country’s population.

However, Moroccan cities do not take full advantage of agglomeration economies, leading to low levels of productivity, promoting the creation of imbalances, and contributing to the persistence of significant territorial disparities between rural and urban areas. Only 10% of the population in the 26 Moroccan FUAs with a commuting zone resides within that zone (compared to an average of 30% in OECD countries), indicating a lack of infrastructure, especially in transport, which prevents agglomeration economies. Additionally, challenges related to access to land and a large informal sector also hinder investments and growth. Unlocking the economic potential of cities is crucial to accelerate Morocco’s convergence towards high-income countries, enhance its economic attractiveness, support job creation, and contribute to achieving the objectives of the country’s New Development Model (NMD).

Despite the significant progress made in human development over the past decades, thanks to numerous interventionist policies, Moroccan cities continue to face large inequalities, as well as persistent challenges related to urban poverty. More than one million urban residents still live below the poverty line, three million are at risk of economic vulnerability, and 13% of the urban population lives in substandard housing. These inequalities also lead to socio-spatial segregation, especially in large cities, between urban centres and peripheral areas. Additionally, urban residents do not have equal access to employment, with women and the young facing the most difficulty in entering the labour market and experiencing the highest unemployment rates.

Moroccan cities face significant challenges in housing, mobility, and environmental sustainability

Although housing and living conditions in Moroccan cities have improved significantly between the last two censuses (2004 and 2014) due to major interventionist policies such as social housing, low-cost housing, and the Cities Without Slums (Villes Sans Bidonvilles) programmes, several challenges remain. First, there is a continued need for housing in cities, due to a combination of the existing deficit (resulting from demographic growth and rural exodus) and future needs. Additionally, although the proportion of slums and informal housing has significantly decreased since the implementation of the Cities Without Slums programme in 2004, the issue persists, particularly in large cities. Furthermore, 20% of the urban housing stock is in substandard condition (a rate equivalent to the qualitative housing deficit – i.e. the share of housing that needs to be improved to meet quality standards – in Chile or Colombia). Moreover, the rents for economic houses and economic apartments increased by 27% and 24%, respectively, between 2010 and 2019, disproportionately affecting middle- and low-income households.

Although the housing policies implemented over the past two decades in Morocco have significantly contributed to the reduction of substandard housing, some limitations remain. Social housing has often benefited middle-income rather than low-income households due to the absence of eligibility criteria and inadequate geographical targeting. The Cities Without Slums programme has not reached all targeted households, with slippage rates (units inhabited by non-beneficiary households) sometimes reaching up to 20%, and urban integration challenges due to a lack of infrastructure and services.

Moroccan cities also face significant challenges regarding mobility. In most Moroccan cities, most trips are made on foot (for example, 62% of trips in Greater Casablanca, compared to 50% nationally), often out of necessity due to the lack of financial means of households and insufficient quality public transport. Moreover, pedestrian infrastructure is often inadequate, and the public transport network is underdeveloped despite initiatives launched in several cities across the country. Only 13% of trips in Casablanca are made by bus, far less than in Mexico City, Mexico (60%) or Santiago, Chile (50%). Another major mobility challenge in Moroccan cities is the high level of pollution caused by traffic congestion and the use of private vehicles instead of public transport.

In Morocco's largest urban areas, greenhouse gas emissions per capita have continuously increased since 1970, particularly in Casablanca, where greenhouse gas emissions linked to production have tripled over the past 50 years. Rapid urban growth has also led to a massive increase in waste production, posing major challenges to waste management infrastructure in cities, with recycling rates not exceeding 10%, leading to harmful consequences for the environment and public health.

Moroccan cities are facing increasing climate and natural risks, exacerbated by several vulnerability factors

Moroccan cities are facing increased climate and natural risks due to climate change, such as heatwaves, droughts, floods, and longer-term phenomena like rising sea levels. Water stress is particularly severe in Morocco. The increased frequency, intensity, and duration of droughts is a major concern for long-term climate resilience and the country's ability to manage natural disasters.

In addition to frequent drought episodes, intense floods have affected several cities in the country, such as Casablanca and Tangier in 2021. Moroccan cities are also confronted with geological risks such as earthquakes. The Al Haouz earthquake in the Marrakech-Safi region in September 2023 – the most powerful in 120 years, with a magnitude of 6.9 on the Richter scale – resulted in a heavy human toll, with nearly 3 000 victims.

These environmental pressures and multiple natural risks are exacerbated by several vulnerability factors, including the persistence of substandard housing, increased coastal urbanisation, and the settlement of vulnerable populations in high-risk areas (low-lying flood-prone zones or areas susceptible to landslides). Moroccan coasts are particularly fragile in the face of rising sea levels, both physically due to Morocco's low topography and socio-economically, given the coastal areas’ significant economic, tourism, and ecological value.

Governance and funding challenges impede compact, sustainable, and resilient urban development in Morocco

Urban development in Morocco is guided by a set of planning tools implemented at the national, regional, and local levels of government. While these planning tools have facilitated the development of public facilities, activity zones, housing, and leisure areas, they are often rigid and poorly adapted to new challenges such as the acceleration of climate change. They also suffer from the multiplicity of actors whose roles and responsibilities are unclear, the complexity and slowness of procedures, and the lack of data and indicators. Moreover, some development projects are driven by land-use opportunities, to the detriment of rational land use, densification, or rehabilitation strategies, leading to urban sprawl.

Although the role of local authorities in urban development and the implementation of public policies has been strengthened by several reforms, such as the 2011 constitutional reform, the 2015 advanced regionalisation, and the 2018 decentralisation charter, coordination remains difficult between different levels of urban planning, between various sectoral policies, and between the different plans that coexist in the same functional urban area (urban planning plans, urban mobility plans, etc.). This lack of coordination hinders the effective implementation of urban policies and can lead to inconsistencies in land use and inadequate infrastructure.

Finally, financing does not meet the growing needs of urbanisation in Morocco. Subnational government expenditures in Morocco accounted only for 3.6% of national GDP and 11.7% of total public spending in 2020, much lower shares than in the vast majority of OECD countries. Financial and fiscal mechanisms are also poorly aligned with urban policies, while the investment capacity of Moroccan cities through their own revenues, such as taxes, remains limited, creating significant funding gaps to meet current and future infrastructure needs.

Morocco has a long history in urban development, but lacks an explicit national urban policy despite strong political momentum

The history of modern urban planning law and urban policies in Morocco dates back to the enactment of the founding urban planning law of 1914. Morocco's urban development has also been supported by several large-scale projects, such as the Tangier-Med port project, the high-speed train line Casa-Tangier (TGV), the West Med and Kenitra ports, the solar power plants in Ouarzazate, as well as integrated urban development programmes launched since 2013 in major cities such as Tangier, Rabat, Marrakech, Salé, Tetouan, Agadir, Casablanca, and Kenitra. The Ministry of National Territory and Urban Planning, Housing and City Policy (MATNUHPV) also has many programmes and strategies for land-use planning and housing policies.

Morocco has also implemented a wide range of sectoral plans and programmes that have a direct or indirect impact on cities and urban development, such as transport strategies like the National Urban Mobility Strategy (SNDU), the National Port Strategy 2030, the new Investment Charter, tourism sector strategies, environmental policies such as the National Climate Plan 2030 (PCN 2030), the Long-Term Low Carbon Strategy Morocco 2050 and the National Water Plan (PNE) 2020-2050.

While the multiplicity of these urban, territorial, or sectoral strategies, plans and programmes indicates a desire by the Moroccan government to address urban growth in a multidimensional and cross-cutting manner, it also reveals a lack of a unified vision for urban development. Many initiatives coexist with different scales and timelines, and insufficient coordination. Despite attempts at formalisation, such as through the National Urban Development Strategy and the City Policy, or the creation of a National Agency for Urban Renewal and the Rehabilitation of Buildings at Risk of Collapse (ANRUR), and more recently the guidelines of the New Development Model, Morocco does not have a formalised and "explicit" national urban policy, like nearly a third of the countries that participated in the joint OECD-UN Habitat survey on the global state of national urban policies.

Roadmap for a national urban policy for Morocco

To address the challenges posed by the rapid urbanisation experienced by Morocco in recent decades, and to better seize the opportunities created by urbanisation, Morocco could adopt an explicitly formalised national urban policy that aligns with existing policies. Such a national urban policy would allow Morocco to strategically address the complex and multidimensional challenges of global megatrends, such as the acceleration of climate change, the digital transition, and demographic changes. After multiple shocks, such as the COVID-19 pandemic and the Al Haouz earthquake in September 2023, the formulation of a national urban policy could also enable Moroccan cities to better anticipate and prepare for future crises.

The OECD Principles on Urban Policy provide a framework for developing Morocco’s national urban policy. The national urban policy could also build on international frameworks and commitments, such as the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), the principles of the New Urban Agenda, and the commitments of the Paris Climate Agreement. Morocco's national urban policy could be structured around four pillars aiming at promoting a competitive, inclusive, sustainable, and resilient urban development. To achieve these four pillars, five key enabling factors in governance and financing are necessary. These pillars and enabling factors are elaborated below through a series of recommended actions based on existing or developing policies and mechanisms in Morocco, as well as international best practices that can serve as a source of inspiration.

Figure 1.1. Roadmap for a national urban policy of Morocco

Source: Authors’ elaboration.

The actions recommended in the roadmap as detailed below were elaborated during a co-production workshop held on 4 June 2024 in Rabat with a wide range of stakeholders in Morocco's urban policy. These actions detail the steps and means to implement the recommendations of the Review. However, they are neither mandatory nor binding. They offer a framework for reflection and suggestions whose relevance and feasibility must be carefully assessed by the Moroccan government, involving stakeholders where appropriate.

Infographic 1. Pillar 1: Promote the economic development of cities and reduce territorial disparities

Infographic 2. Pillar 2: Promote inclusive growth in cities

Infographic 3. Pillar 3: Build environmentally sustainable Moroccan cities that promote climate change mitigation

Infographic 4. Pillar 4: Strengthen the economic, social, and environmental resilience of Moroccan cities, including their ability to adapt to climate change

Infographic 5. Key enabling factor 1: Promote strategic and integrated urban planning

Infographic 6. Key enabling factor 2: Strengthen the vertical and intersectoral coordination at the national and local levels (between municipalities) and promote stakeholder participation and engagement

Infographic 7. Key enabling factor 3: Promote the systemic evaluation of the national urban policy and its results and impacts

Infographic 8. Key enabling factor 4: Optimise the financing of urban development

Infographic 9. Key enabling factor 5: Strengthen strategic, technical and human capacities at the national and local levels