Zawaya

Repercussions of the Gulf's proposal

By: Driss Ben Ali

The proposal of the Gulf Cooperation Council to Morocco is surprising, and raises several questions.

Firstly, this invitation is an insult to geography, because it’s quite astonishing to invite a country to join a geographical group that’s located 6000 kilometers away.

Secondly, the proposal is not very convincing on the economic level. We can argue that the Gulf countries and Morocco are complementary, since the former are sparsely populated and have cash, while Morocco has sufficiently skilled workers and competent managers in several fields.

However, if you consider the nature and volume of economic relations, you will realize that this is only true in theory.

In reality, things are different: The Gulf investments are limited (only 4% of their total potential); they mainly focus on sectors with easy profit, i.e. real estate and tourism; Moroccan workers are not attracted to the Gulf countries due to their low wages, harsh working conditions and unfriendly social environment.

Finally, the GCC invitation makes both politicians and observers wonder about the future of the AMU.

This led the Moroccan Minister of Foreign Affairs to set the record straight, as he welcomed the GCC proposal while reminding the public opinion of Morocco’s adherence to its geographical area, and its strong attachment to the Arab Maghreb Union (AMU).

In fact, anyone with political responsibility knows that before being the result of history, Morocco, like any other country, is the product of its geography.

This element imposes many constraints on politics, so it would be irrational to exclude it, particularly in today’s world characterized by globalization and large economic blocs.

The Maghreb is at the doorstep of the world’s largest market, and has social structures characterized by spatial continuity and ethnic and cultural homogeneity. Therefore, it has every interest in putting these strengths to use in order to build its unity.

The GCC’s proposal will not change this fact, unless it’s motivated by other goals unrelated to economy. In this case, the consequences are likely to be negative, and the Maghreb Union will be postponed indefinitely.