Map of Morocco | Geography | People | Government | Economy | Energy | Communication
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Background: In 788 about a century after the Arab conquest of North Africa a series of Moroccan Muslim dynasties began to rule in Morocco. In the 16th century the Sa'adi monarchy particularly under Ahmad al-MANSUR (1578-1603) repelled foreign invaders and inaugurated a golden age. The Alaouite Dynasty to which the current Moroccan royal family belongs dates from the 17th century. In 1860 Spain occupied northern Morocco and ushered in a half century of trade rivalry among European powers that saw Morocco's sovereignty steadily erode; in 1912 the French imposed a protectorate over the country. A protracted independence struggle with France ended successfully in 1956. The internationalized city of Tangier and most Spanish possessions were turned over to the new country that same year. Sultan MOHAMMED V the current monarch's grandfather organized the new state as a constitutional monarchy and in 1957 assumed the title of king. Since Spain’s 1976 withdrawal from what is today called Western Sahara Morocco has extended its de facto administrative control to roughly 80% of this territory; however the UN does not recognize Morocco as the administering power for Western Sahara. The UN since 1991 has monitored a cease-fire between Morocco and the Polisario Front - Western Sahara's liberation movement - and leads ongoing negotiations over the status of the territory. King MOHAMMED VI in early 2011 responded to the spread of pro-democracy protests in the region by implementing a reform program that included a new constitution passed by popular referendum in July 2011 under which some new powers were extended to parliament and the prime minister but ultimate authority remains in the hands of the monarch. In November 2011 the Justice and Development Party - a moderate Islamist party - won the largest number of seats in parliamentary elections becoming the first Islamist party to lead the Moroccan Government.


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Location: Northern Africa bordering the North Atlantic Ocean and the Mediterranean Sea between Algeria and Western Sahara

Geographic coordinates: 32 00 N 5 00 W

Map reference: Africa

Area
Total: 446,550 km²
Land: 446,300 km²
Water: 250 km²
Rank: 58
Comparative: slightly larger than California

Land boundaries
Total: 2,363 km
Border countries: (3) Algeria 1900 km; Western Sahara 444 km; Spain (Ceuta) 8 km; Spain (Melilla) 10.5 km
Note: an additional 75-meter border segment exists between Morocco and the Spanish exclave of Penon de Velez de la Gomera

Coastline: 1835 km

Maritime claims
Territorial sea: 12 nm
Contiguous zone: 24 nm
Exclusive economic zone: 200 nm
Continental shelf: 200-m depth or to the depth of exploitation

Climate: Mediterranean becoming more extreme in the interior

Terrain: mountainous northern coast and interior bordered by large plateaus with intermontane valleys and fertile coastal plains

Elevation
Extremes lowest point: Sebkha Tah -55 m
Extremes highest point: Jebel Toubkal 4,165 m

Natural resources: phosphates iron ore manganese lead zinc fish salt

Land use
Agricultural land: 67.5%
Forest: 11.5%
Other: 21%

Irrigated land: 14,850 km² (2004)

Major rivers

Major watersheds area km²

Total water withdrawal

Total renewable water resources: 29 km³ (2011)

Natural hazards: northern mountains geologically unstable and subject to earthquakes; periodic droughts

Geography
Note: strategic location along Strait of Gibraltar


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Population: 33,322,699 (July 2016 est.)
Rank: 39
Growth rate: 1% (2016 est.)
Growth rate rank: 117
Below poverty line: 15% (2007 est.)

Nationality
Noun: Moroccan
Adjective: Moroccan

Ethnic groups: Arab-Berber 99% other 1%

Languages: Arabic (official) Berber languages (Tamazight (official) Tachelhit Tarifit) French (often the language of business government and diplomacy)

Religions: Muslim 99% (official; virtually all Sunni 0.1% Shia) other 1% (includes Christian Jewish and Baha'i) Jewish about 6,000 (2010 est.)

Demographic profile

Age structure
0-14 years: 26.41%
15-24 years: 17.42%
25-54 years: 42.13%
55-64 years: 7.6%
65 years and over: 6.43% (2016 est.)

Dependency ratios
Total dependency ratio: 50.1%
Youth dependency ratio: 40.9%
Elderly dependency ratio: 9.3%
Potential support ratio: 10.8%

Median age
Total: 28.1 years
Male: 27.5 years
Female: 28.7 years

Population growth rate: 1% (2016 est.)
Rank: 117

Birth rate: 18.2 births/1000 population (2016 est.)
Rank: 100

Death rate: 4.81 deaths/1000 population (2016 est.)
Rank: 195

Net migration rate: -3.36 migrant(s)/1000 population (2016 est.)
Rank: 186

Population distribution

Urbanization
Urban population: 60.2% of total population
Rate of urbanization: 2.26% annual rate of change

Major urban areas
Population: Casablanca 3.515 million; RABAT (capital) 1.967 million; Fes 1.172 million; Marrakech 1.134 million; Tangier 982,000 (2016)

Environment
Current issues: land degradation/desertification (soil erosion resulting from farming of marginal areas overgrazing destruction of vegetation); water supplies contaminated by raw sewage; siltation of reservoirs; oil pollution of coastal waters
International agreements party to: Biodiversity Climate Change Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol Desertification Endangered Species Hazardous Wastes Law of the Sea Marine Dumping Ozone Layer Protection Ship Pollution Wetlands Whaling
International agreements signed but not ratified: Environmental Modification

Air pollutants

Sex ratio
At birth: 1.05 male/female
0-14 years: 1.03 male/female
15-24 years: 0.99 male/female
25-54 years: 0.94 male/female
55-64 years: 0.99 male/female
65 years and over: 0.82 male/female
Total population: 0.97 male/female

Mothers mean age at first birth

Maternal mortality ratio

Infant mortality rate
Total: 23.6 deaths/1000 live births
Male: 27.92 deaths/1000 live births
Female: 19.05 deaths/1000 live births
Rank: 74

Life expectancy at birth
Total population: 76.71 years
Male: 73.64 years
Female: 79.94 years
Rank: 79

Total fertility rate: 2.13 children born/woman (2016 est.)
Rank: 105

Contraceptive prevalence rate: 67.4% (2010/11)

Drinking water source:

Current health expenditure

Physicians density: 0.62 physicians/1000 population (2009)

Hospital bed density: 0.9 beds/1000 population (2012)

Sanitation facility access:

Hiv/Aids
Adult prevalence rate: 0.16% (2013 est.)
Adult prevalence rate rank: 99
People living with hivaids: 30,600 (2013 est.)
People living with hivaids rank: 69
Deaths: 1400 (2013 est.)
Deaths rank: 67

Major infectious diseases

Obesity adult prevalence rate: 21.7% (2014)
Rank: 114

Alcohol consumption

Tobacco use

Children under the age of 5 years underweight: 3.1% (2011)
Rank: 113

Education expenditures: 6.6% of GDP (2013)
Rank: 59

Literacy
Definition: age 15 and over can read and write
Total population: 68.5%
Male: 78.6%
Female: 58.8%

School life expectancy primary to tertiary education
Total: 11 years
Male: 12 years
Female: 11 years

Youth unemployment


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Country name
Conventional long form: Kingdom of Morocco
Conventional short form: Morocco
Local long form: Al Mamlakah al Maghribiyah
Local short form: Al Maghrib

Government type: constitutional monarchy

Capital
Name: Rabat
Geographic coordinates: 34 01 N 6 49 W
Time difference: UTC 0
Daylight saving time: +1 hr begins last Sunday in April; ends last Sunday in September

Administrative divisions: 15 regions; Grand Casablanca Chaouia-Ouardigha Doukkala-Abda Fes-Boulemane Gharb-Chrarda-Beni Hssen Guelmim-Es Smara Laayoune-Boujdour-Sakia El Hamra Marrakech-Tensift-Al Haouz Meknes-Tafilalet Oriental Rabat-Sale-Zemmour-Zaer Souss-Massa-Draa Tadla-Azilal Tanger-Tetouan Taza-Al Hoceima-Taounate
Note: Morocco claims the territory of Western Sahara the political status of which is considered undetermined by the US Government; portions of the regions Guelmim-Es Smara and Laayoune-Boujdour-Sakia El Hamra as claimed by Morocco lie within Western Sahara; Morocco also claims Oued Eddahab-Lagouira another region that falls entirely within Western Sahara; as of April 2016 Morocco’s parliament was examining legislation to reduce the number of regions from 16 to 12 under its “advanced regionalization” plan

Dependent areas

Independence: 2 March 1956 (from France)

National holiday: Throne Day (accession of King MOHAMMED VI to the throne) 30 July (1999)

Constitution: several previous; latest drafted 17 June 2011 approved by referendum 1 July 2011; note - sources disagree on whether the 2011 referendum was for a new constitution or for reforms to the previous constitution (2011)

Legal system: mixed legal system of civil law based on French law and Islamic law; judicial review of legislative acts by Constitutional Court

International law organization participation: has not submitted an ICJ jurisdiction declaration; non-party state to the ICCt

Citizenship

Suffrage: 18 years of age; universal

Executive branch
Chief of state: King MOHAMMED VI
Head of government: Prime Minister Abdelillah BENKIRANE
Cabinet: Council of Ministers chosen by the prime minister in consultation with Parliament and appointed by the monarch
Electionsappointments: the monarchy is hereditary; prime minister appointed by the monarch from the majority party following legislative elections

Legislative branch
Description: bicameral Parliament consists of the Chamber of Advisors and the Chamber of Representatives (395 seats; 305 members directly elected in multi-seat constituencies by proportional representation vote and 90 directly elected in a single nationwide constituency by proportional representation vote; members serve 5-year terms); note - in the national constituency 60 seats are reserved for women and 30 reserved for young people
Elections: Chamber of Advisors- last held on 3 October 2009 ; Chamber of Representatives - last held on 25 November 2011 (next to be held in 2016)
Election results: Chamber of Advisors- percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - NA; Chamber of Representatives - percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - PJD 107 PI 60 RNI 52 PAM 47 USFP 39 MP 32 UC 23 PPS 18 other 17

Judicial branch
Highest court: Supreme Court or Court of Cassation ; Constitutional Court (consists of 12 members)
Judge selection and term of office: Supreme Court judges appointed by the Superior Council of Judicial Power a 20-member body presided by the monarch and including the Supreme Court president the prosecutor general representatives of the appeals and first instance courts - among them 1 woman magistrate the president of the National Council of the Rights of Man and 5 'notable persons' appointed by the monarch; judges appointed for life; Constitutional Court members - 6 designated by the monarch and 6 elected by Parliament; court president appointed by the monarch from among the court members; members serve 9-year non-renewable terms
Subordinate courts: courts of appeal; High Court of Justice; administrative and commercial courts; regional and sadad courts ; first instance courts

Political parties and leaders:

International organization participation: ABEDA AfDB AFESD AMF AMU CAEU CD EBRD FAO G-11 G-77 IAEA IBRD ICAO ICC (national committees) ICRM IDA IDB IFAD IFC IFRCS IHO ILO IMF IMO IMSO Interpol IOC IOM IPU ISO ITSO ITU ITUC (NGOs) LAS MIGA MONUSCO NAM OAS (observer) OIC OIF OPCW OSCE (partner) Pacific Alliance (observer) Paris Club (associate) PCA SICA (observer) UN UNCTAD UNESCO UNHCR UNIDO UNOCI UNSC (temporary) UNWTO UPU WCO WHO WIPO WMO WTO

Diplomatic representation
In the us chief of mission: Ambassador Mohammed Rachad BOUHLAL
In the us chancery: 1601 21st Street NW Washington DC 20,009
In the us telephone: [1] 462-7,980
In the us FAX: [1] 462-7,643
In the us consulate general: New York
From the us chief of mission: Ambassador Dwight L. BUSH Sr.
From the us embassy: Km 5.7 Avenue Mohammed VI Souissi Rabat
From the us mailing address: Unit 9,400 Box Front Office DPO AE 9,718
From the us telephone: [212] 537 63 7,777
From the us FAX: [212] 537 63 7,201
From the us consulate general: Casablanca

Flag description: red with a green pentacle (five-pointed linear star) known as Sulayman's (Solomon's) seal in the center of the flag; red and green are traditional colors in Arab flags although the use of red is more commonly associated with the Arab states of the Persian Gulf; the pentacle represents the five pillars of Islam and signifies the association between God and the nation; design dates to 1912

National symbols: pentacle symbol lion; national colors: red green

National anthem
Name: 'Hymne Cherifien'
Lyrics and music: Ali Squalli HOUSSAINI/Leo MORGAN
Note: music adopted 1956 lyrics adopted 1970

National heritage


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Economy overview: Morocco has capitalized on its proximity to Europe and relatively low labor costs to build a diverse open market-oriented economy. In the 1980s Morocco was a heavily indebted country before pursuing austerity measures and pro-market reforms overseen by the IMF. Since taking the throne in 1999 King MOHAMMED VI has presided over a stable economy marked by steady growth low inflation and gradually falling unemployment although poor harvests and economic difficulties in Europe contributed to an economic slowdown. Industrial development strategies and infrastructure improvements - most visibly illustrated by a new port and free trade zone near Tangier - are improving Morocco's competitiveness. Morocco also seeks to expand its renewable energy capacity with a goal of making renewable more than 40% of electricity output by 2020. Key sectors of the economy include agriculture tourism aerospace phosphates textiles apparel and subcomponents. To boost exports Morocco entered into a bilateral Free Trade Agreement with the United States in 2006 and an Advanced Status agreement with the European Union in 2008. Despite Morocco's economic progress the country suffers from high unemployment poverty and illiteracy particularly in rural areas. In 2011 and 2012 high prices on fuel - which is subsidized and almost entirely imported - strained the government's budget and widened the country's current account deficit. In 2014 Morocco ended subsidies on diesel gasoline and fuel oil which have improved its budget deficit. Subsidies on sugar butane gas and flour remain. Morocco’s current account deficit has also benefit from the fall in oil prices. Key economic challenges for Morocco include reforming the education system and the judiciary while increasing the competitiveness of the private sector.

Real gdp purchasing power parity:
Note: data are in 2014 US dollars
Rank: 57

Real gdp growth rate:
Rank: 91

Real gdp per capita:
Note: data are in 2014 US dollars
Rank: 150

Gross national saving:
Rank: 38

Gdp composition by end use
Household consumption: 60.6%
Government consumption: 19%
Investment in fixed capital: 30%
Investment in inventories: 4%
Exports of goods and services: 33.7%
Imports of goods and services: -47.3%: (2014 est.)

Gdp composition by sector of origin
Agriculture: 14%
Industry: 24.9%
Services: 61.1%

Agriculture products: barley wheat citrus fruits grapes vegetables olives; livestock; wine

Industries: automotive parts phosphate mining and processing aerospace food processing leather goods textiles construction energy tourism

Industrial production growth rate: 2.7% (2014 est.)
Rank: 109

Labor force: 12 million (2014 est.)
Rank: 47
By occupation agriculture: 39.1%
By occupation industry: 20.3%
By occupation services: 40.5%

Unemployment rate:
Rank: 109

Youth unemployment

Population below poverty line: 15% (2007 est.)

Gini index

Household income or consumption by percentage share
Lowest 10: 2.7%
Highest 10: 33.2%

Distribution of family income gini index:
Rank: 54

Budget
Revenues: $29.4 billion
Expenditures: $34.99 billion
Surplus or deficit: -5% of GDP (2014 est.)
Surplus or deficit rank: 165

Taxes and other revenues: 26.1% of GDP (2014 est.)
Rank: 110

Public debt:
Rank: 33

Revenue

Fiscal year: calendar year

Inflation rate consumer prices:
Rank: 40

Central bank discount rate:
Rank: 58

Commercial bank prime lending rate:
Rank: 137

Stock of narrow money:
Rank: 42

Stock of broad money:
Rank: 56

Stock of domestic credit:
Rank: 49

Market value of publicly traded shares:
Rank: 52

Current account balance:
Rank: 176

Exports:
Rank: 74
Commodities: clothing and textiles automobiles electric components inorganic chemicals transistors crude minerals fertilizers (including phosphates) petroleum products citrus fruits vegetables fish
Partners: France 20.9% Spain 19.9% Brazil 5.8% US 4% (2013)

Imports:
Rank: 62
Commodities: crude petroleum textile fabric telecommunications equipment wheat gas and electricity transistors plastics
Partners: Spain 14% France 12.7% China 7.1% US 6.9% Saudi Arabia 6.5% Italy 5.3% Germany 4.7% Russia 4.5% (2013)

Reserves of foreign exchange and gold:
Rank: 57

Debt external:
Rank: 69

Stock of direct foreign investment at home:
Rank: 57

Stock of direct foreign investment abroad:
Rank: 79

Exchange rates:


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Electricity
Production: 23.65 billion kWh (2011 est.)
Production rank: 70
Consumption: 25.14 billion kWh (2011 est.)
Consumption rank: 66
Exports: 818 million kWh (2012 est.)
Exports rank: 58
Imports: 6.1 billion kWh (2014 est.)
Imports rank: 39
Installed generating capacity: 7.7 million kW (2014 est.)
Installed generating capacity rank: 69
Generation sources fossil fuels: 69% of total installed capacity (2012 est.)
Generation sources fossil fuels rank: 109
Generation sources nuclear: 0% of total installed capacity (2012 est.)
Generation sources nuclear rank: 142
Generation sources hydroelectricity: 19.3% of total installed capacity (2012 est.)
Generation sources hydroelectricity rank: 94
Generation sources other renewable sources: 4.8% of total installed capacity (2012 est.)
Generation sources other renewable sources rank: 58

Coal

Petroleum
Petroleum total petroleum production: 160 bbl/day (2016 est.)
Petroleum total petroleum production rank: 95
Crude oil exports: 0 bbl/day (2013 est.)
Crude oil exports rank: 162
Crude oil imports: 145,000 bbl/day (2013 est.)
Crude oil imports rank: 38
Crude oil proven reserves: 680,000 bbl (1 January 2016 es)
Crude oil proven reserves rank: 99

Crude oil

Refined petroleum
Products production: 149,400 bbl/day (2013 est.)
Products production rank: 62
Products consumption: 296,000 bbl/day (2014 est.)
Products consumption rank: 43
Products exports: 28,510 bbl/day (2013 est.)
Products exports rank: 80
Products imports: 186,400 bbl/day (2013 est.)
Products imports rank: 34

Natural gas
Production: 97 million m³ (2014 est.)
Production rank: 83
Consumption: 597 million m³ (2014 est.)
Consumption rank: 87
Exports: 0 m³ (2013 est.)
Exports rank: 147
Imports: 500 million m³ (2014 est.)
Imports rank: 56
Proven reserves: 1.444 billion m³ (1 January 2016 es)
Proven reserves rank: 101

Carbon dioxide emissions
From consumption of energy: 39 million Mt (2013 est.)
From consumption of energy rank: 69

Energy consumption per capita


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Telephones
Fixed lines total subscriptions: 2,222,370
Fixed lines subscriptions per 100 inhabitants: 7
Fixed lines rank: 54
Mobile cellular total: 43.08 million
Mobile cellular subscriptions per 100 inhabitants: 129
Mobile cellular rank: 32

Telephone system
General assessment: good system composed of open-wire lines cables and microwave radio relay links; principal switching centers are Casablanca and Rabat; national network nearly 100% digital using fiber-optic links; improved rural service employs microwave radio relay; Internet available but expensive
Domestic: fixed-line teledensity is below 10 per 100 persons; mobile-cellular subscribership exceeds 120 per 100 persons
International: country code - 212; landing point for the Atlas Offshore Estepona-Tetouan Euroafrica Spain-Morocco and SEA-ME-WE-3 fiber-optic telecommunications undersea cables that provide connectivity to Asia the Middle East and Europe; satellite earth stations - 2 Intelsat and 1 Arabsat; microwave radio relay to Gibraltar Spain and Western Sahara; coaxial cable and microwave radio relay to Algeria; participant in Medarabtel; fiber-optic cable link from Agadir to Algeria and Tunisia (2016)

Broadcast media: 2 TV broadcast networks with state-run Radio-Television Marocaine (RTM) operating one network and the state partially owning the other; foreign TV broadcasts are available via satellite dish; 3 radio broadcast networks with RTM operating one; the government-owned network includes 10 regional radio channels in addition to its national service (2007)

Internet
Country code: .ma
Users total: 19.021 million
Users percent of population: 57.1%
Users rank: 29

Broadband fixed subscriptions


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Military expenditures:
Rank: 14

Military and security forces

Military service age and obligation: 20 years of age for voluntary military service; no conscription; service obligation - 18 months (2012)

Space program

Terrorist groups


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National air transport system
Number of registered air carriers: 4
Inventory of registered aircraft operated by air carriers: 65
Annual passenger traffic on registered air carriers: 6,786,850
Annual freight traffic on registered air carriers: 47,828,227 mt-km

Civil aircraft registration country code prefix: CN (2016)

Airports: 55 (2013)
Rank: 86
With paved runways total: 31
With paved runways over 3047 m: 11
With paved runways 2438 to 3047 m: 9
With paved runways 15-24 to 2437 m: 7
With paved runways 914 to 1523 m: 4
With unpaved runways total: 24
With unpaved runways 2438 to 3047 m: 1
With unpaved runways 15-24 to 2437 m: 7
With unpaved runways 914 to 1523 m: 11
With unpaved runways under 914 m: 5

Heliports: 1 (2013)

Pipelines: gas 944 km; oil 270 km; refined products 175 km (2013)

Railways
Total: 2,067 km
Standard gauge: 2,067 km 1.435-m gauge (2014)
Rank: 71

Roadways
Total: 58,395 km
Paved: 41,116 km
Unpaved: 17,279 km
Rank: 73

Waterways

Merchant marine
Total: 26
By type: cargo 1 chemical tanker 3 container 6 passenger/cargo 14 roll on/roll off 2
Foreign owned: 14
Registered in other countries: 4 (2010)
Rank: 88

Ports and terminals
Major seaport: Casablanca Jorf Lasfar Mohammedia Safi Tangier
Container port: Tangier (2,093,408)
LNG terminal: Jorf Lasfar


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Disputes international: claims and administers Western Sahara whose sovereignty remains unresolved; Morocco protests Spain's control over the coastal enclaves of Ceuta Melilla and Penon de Velez de la Gomera the islands of Penon de Alhucemas and Islas Chafarinas and surrounding waters; both countries claim Isla Perejil (Leila Island); discussions have not progressed on a comprehensive maritime delimitation setting limits on resource exploration and refugee interdiction since Morocco's 2002 rejection of Spain's unilateral designation of a median line from the Canary Islands; Morocco serves as one of the primary launching areas of illegal migration into Spain from North Africa; Algeria's border with Morocco remains an irritant to bilateral relations each nation accusing the other of harboring militants and arms smuggling; the National Liberation Front's assertions of a claim to Chirac Pastures in southeastern Morocco is a dormant dispute

Refugees and internally displaced persons

Illicit drugs: one of the world's largest producers of illicit hashish; shipments of hashish mostly directed to Western Europe; transit point for cocaine from South America destined for Western Europe; significant consumer of cannabis