The Moroccan waters, consisting of an exclusive economic zone of over one million square kilometers; are considered among the most abundant in fish resources; Morocco holds the rank of first fish producer in Africa as well as the first producer and exporter of sardine (sardina pilchardus).
The significant production potential available to Morocco creates increasing interest from major maritime nations as evidence by the cooperation agreements that Morocco signed with the EU and Russia in the field of fisheries ; In addition to this international interest, there is a growing national will to make of this sector one of the major drivers of the Moroccan economy;
The fisheries sector already plays an important economic and social role in the Moroccan economy. Its contribution to the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) has been around 2.3% as an average during the past 10 years. In terms of employment, the fishing industry generates more than 170,000 direct jobs and nearly 500,000 indirect jobs. Morocco has implemented a national strategy called « Halieutis », for the development of the sector.
Moroccan marine fisheries generate an annual production of more than one million tons, placing the Kingdom at the forefront of African producers and at the 25th rank on the global scale.
This industry accounts for 50% of Morocco’s agro food exports representing 7% of its total exports value.
Moroccan fisheries resource is characterized by the wide variety of species:
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