Green Economy: New Study Conducted on Means to Finance SMEs

A study on the accessibility and diversity of financial offers available to Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) in Morocco, and their ability to accelerate Morocco’s transition to a green economy, has been conducted by the Ministry of Economy and Finance in collaboration with FSD Africa and the British Embassy in Morocco.

“The Ministry of Economy and Finance of the Kingdom of Morocco, together with its partners FSD Africa and the British Embassy in Morocco (Foreign Commonwealth Development Office), conducted a study on the accessibility and diversity of financial offers available to SMEs in Morocco, and on the capacity of these companies (which account for 93% of all companies in the country and employ 46% of its workforce) to accelerate Morocco’s transition to the green economy,” the ministry states on its website.

The supply of green finance has increased in the Kingdom, with the emergence of several offers in recent years to support green projects, the same source adds, noting that there is an increasingly sophisticated ecosystem of actors capable of stimulating the growth of innovative Moroccan small businesses through debt, equity and grants, whether public institutions with a mandate to support Moroccan businesses, regional and continental development finance institutions or local commercial banks.

However, and in view of the growing demand for green financing instruments, additional effort should be made through innovative financing schemes to fill the financing gap.

The study concludes that the country’s commitment to sustainable financial growth will require close collaboration of different stakeholders, noting that FSD Africa will contribute to the design of a new financial instrument that will increase the availability and accessibility of green finance for Moroccan SMEs, following the publication of this study.

“We note with satisfaction the relevance of this study covering a gap analysis of the supply and needs of green finance targeted at SMEs for the design of a new instrument that could meet the demand of SMEs in terms of green finance,” said in this regard the Minister of Economy and Finance, Nadia Fettah.

For his part, the UK Ambassador to Morocco, Simon Martin, recalled that “in March 2023, the UK published its updated strategy for green finance. It emphasizes the growth opportunity for businesses, particularly SMEs, in the transition to a net zero balance, and the need for targeted support. It also highlights FSD Africa’s work in Morocco, which is already helping to stimulate capital flows for green economic growth.

Source: Agency Morocaine De Presse