ICE champions strategic infrastructure planning in meeting with Moroccan government officials

Over 60 influential decision-makers and industry experts representing the Moroccan government joined a virtual session with the ICE Enabling Better Infrastructure (EBI) team last month.

The upcoming 2025 African Cup and 2030 FIFA World Cup, which Morocco will host jointly with Portugal and Spain, will create significant demand for infrastructure in the country. This will, in turn, require significant investment.

Morocco is financially stable, with strong regulatory frameworks and world-leading procurement processes, according to recent analysis.

But its infrastructure governance and planning are lacking. The country currently has no strategic infrastructure plan or project pipeline in place.

As part of a government-to-government initiative, the UK’s Infrastructure Projects Authority (IPA) is supporting the Moroccan government to meet its long-term infrastructure needs.

How EBI can help

The IPA invited the EBI team to present a virtual session on 21 February 2024.

EBI chair Jim Hall, programme head Dr Kerry Bobbins, and ICE policy director Chris Richards told stakeholders how EBI can improve infrastructure planning, prioritisation, and delivery.

EBI guidance is made up of eight principles and a practical three-step process to inform decision-making. These decisions help governments deliver major projects purposefully, in ways that meet their long-term ambitions and attract more private investment.

Why is strategic infrastructure investment important?

Humans depend on economic infrastructure such as electricity, transport, and water to survive and thrive.

It’s instrumental to meeting the UN Sustainable Development Goals and delivering a good quality of life for all people while safeguarding the planet and its future.

Globally, however, there's a huge gap between projected infrastructure investment and the capital needed to build and maintain the systems humans need.

In Morocco, the ‘infrastructure gap’ is 0.9% of GDP. The Moroccan government can’t close this gap with public funds alone.

A clear, decisive forward plan for major projects gives investors and suppliers more confidence and makes a country a more attractive place to invest. ‘Crowding in’ private finance in this way can help raise the funds governments need.

Such certainty also keeps project costs down. At a time when inflation is undermining delivery worldwide, this is extremely important.

Next steps

Alongside its guidance, the EBI programme directly supports government representatives and other stakeholders around the world. It does this through events, workshops, and a collaborative network for sharing insight.

The ICE and the EBI team will continue to engage with the Moroccan government as it develops an infrastructure strategy to bring about positive change for the country and its citizens.

Find out more about the EBI programme.