The Kingdom of Morocco possesses exceptional marine and maritime resources, with a coastline stretching over 3,500 kilometres and an Exclusive Economic Zone of approximately 1.2 million km², giving it a leading geostrategic position. The development of a competitive and sustainable blue economy constitutes, for Morocco, a major driver of value creation, job creation and territorial resilience. Its implementation requires a coherent framework for action, combining coastal governance, planning, investment mobilisation and the structuring of value chains.

The Royal Guidelines have emphasised the central importance of this issue. In his speech to Parliament on 10 October 2025, His Majesty King Mohammed VI, may God assist him, emphasised “the need to take the optimal operationalisation of the levers for the sustainable development of the national coastline seriously, in particular the Coastal Law and the National Coastal Plan, in order to ensure the necessary balance between accelerated development, protection and enhancement of coastal areas, within the framework of a national maritime economy that generates wealth and jobs”.

The Royal Address delivered in June 2025 to participants at the ‘Africa for the Ocean’ Summit also highlighted the strategic importance of the blue economy: ‘The blue economy is not an ecological luxury: it is a strategic necessity. Sustainable aquaculture, offshore renewable energy, port industries, marine biotechnology, responsible coastal tourism… All these sectors have a future provided they are structured, interconnected, designed as value chains and backed by substantial investment and appropriate standards.”

These guidelines, which form part of the international context, reinforce the need to put national maritime public policies into practice. The 3rd United Nations Ocean Conference (UNOC3), held in Nice in June 2025, consolidated the global agenda around SDG 14 and the decarbonisation pathway for maritime activities by 2050, whilst reiterating the decisive role of local authorities in the practical implementation of commitments, particularly in terms of planning, investment and scaling up solutions.

At national level, the first meeting of the Interministerial Commission for the Development of the Blue Economy, held on 24 June 2025, and the official launch of the National Blue Economy Strategy (NBES), mark the Kingdom of Morocco’s entry into a phase of structuring and implementation. The SNEB will serve as the reference framework for ensuring the coherence of public action, guiding investment and organising the regional implementation of the blue economy, in line with the New Development Model.

In this context, the establishment of regional maritime clusters across the nine coastal regions represents a key driver for structural development. These clusters aim to organise a regional ecosystem bringing together the relevant stakeholders, to promote the sharing of ‘blue’ scientific expertise and knowledge, and to support the emergence of interconnected value chains. This approach requires sustainable and effective maritime spatial planning, based on the specific potential and constraints of each region, aligned with the requirements for ecosystem conservation, and supported by a strengthened capacity to set up and manage projects.

The success of clusters requires cross-cutting implementation conditions. It necessitates transparent governance and multi-stakeholder coordination mechanisms, enabling the alignment of strategies, investments, skills and support mechanisms. It depends on the upskilling of the workforce and the emergence of profiles suited to the new professions linked to ‘blue skills’. Finally, it relies on the ability of regions to structure integrated projects, improve their bankability and mobilise appropriate funding.

It is within this framework that the conference organised by the Association of Moroccan Regions, in partnership with the WestMED initiative, aims to:

• inform stakeholders about the roles, challenges and opportunities of coastal maritime clusters in the emergence of the blue economy
• initiate a strategic dialogue on approaches aligned with Morocco’s regional specificities
• identify operational recommendations for effectively integrating clusters into the design and implementation process of the SNEB
• improve access to blue finance as well as local capacity for developing integrated projects

Concept note/ Program

Invitation only

For mor information, please contact : Hassan Agouzoul (Hub National WestMED – Maroc)