Morocco King pushes fellow African leaders for more proactive reforms

At the 2025 Ibrahim Governance Weekend in Marrakesh, King Mohammed VI urged African leaders to take ownership of the continent’s future through financial autonomy, self-reliance, and structural reform.

IGW 2025 was held in the Moroccan capital from 1 to 3 June 2025, as reported by Moroccan government friendly Atalayar.

He has used this platform to repeatedly call on his fellow African leaders to take leadership initiative and actively shape the continent together based on shared principles and common interests.

As the flagship event of the Mo Ibrahim Foundation, the organisation aims to initiate original dialogue and events for leading and grassroots African voices to come together to discuss Africa’s role in the world.

The Moroccan monarch delivered a momentous speech, drawing emphasis to the need for greater practical initiatives toward self-determination so as to break out of its status quo of dependency and financial vulnerability.

He also pushed for greater urgency for other nations to take charge of their own economic futures, declaring that “development cannot be decreed; it is built through ambitious policies, investment in human capital and rigorous economic governance.”

Rejecting Africa’s longstanding dependence on official development assistance, the King declared that the continent “can no longer depend on foreign aid and charity.” He described such aid as “slow, conditional, and sometimes toxic,” arguing it often leads to crippling debt rather than enabling sustainable growth and real opportunities for wealth creation.

His remarks marked a clarion call for structural reform and a reorientation toward self-financing, regional collaboration, and economic transformation.

His Majesty’s royal message acts as the outlining of a new doctrine of financial autonomy and self-financing vis-à-vis innovations in macroeconomic reform, activating the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) as well as encouraging the shift from resource extraction to local added value in African exports.

These proposals reflect Morocco’s own developmental trajectory under his reign.

Ever since King Mohammed VI ascended to the throne in 1999, his rule has seen aggressive moves to modernise, industrialise, as well as attract FDI. Morocco has set in motion a series of major tax breaks, a streamlining of bureaucratic processes and the increased injection of capital to promote FDI.

Key economic reforms in Morocco have included the 2005 Plan Emergence Industrielle, which aimed to modernise the economy by prioritising high-value sectors such as automotive, aeronautics, and electronics. In 2008, the Green Morocco Plan was launched to rapidly modernise agriculture and boost agro-industrial productivity. On the administrative efficiency side, the 2011 introduction of a Common Enterprise Identifier simplified bureaucratic processes and improved the business climate.

Additionally, King Mohammed VI’s reign has been marked by emphasis on thematic priorities such as SMEs, infrastructure development as well as tourism. The King’s leadership has also been defined by key pan-African initiatives. These include support for the Atlantic Initiative for the Sahel, the development of Casablanca Finance City as a regional financial centre, and the Nigeria–Morocco Atlantic Gas Pipeline. The launch of the Mohammed VI Investment Fund (M6FI), with an initial allocation of £1.2 billion, aims to provide long-term financing for African businesses and critical infrastructure projects.

Furthermore, His Majesty called for a rethinking of the global financial system, urging for its reform to adopt a “multilateral approach” and inclusive of African voices, which have too often been sidelined in shaping the global monetary and financial system.

UN Deputy Secretary-General Amina Mohammed echoed similar themes in her address, stressing the importance of people-centred development rooted in institutional accountability. She reaffirmed the UN’s partnership with the African Union, highlighting ongoing efforts to advance the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), operationalize the Pact for the Future, and mobilize global financing through the SDG Stimulus initiative.

Development finance emerged as a central theme of IGW 2025. Plenary sessions within the Forum revolved around resource mobilisation, ways to maximise domestic revenue as well as new tactics to expedite greater levels of private capital flows.

A final report detailing key outcomes and recommendations is expected following the forum, complementing the already released “Facts and Figures” preliminary document.

The IGW’s deliberations aim to shape a unified African position ahead of the 4th International Conference on Financing for Development, scheduled for 1–3 July 2025 in Seville, Spain.

Atalayar/ Maghrebi