Morocco aims to elevate its video game industry to reach revenues of 30 billion Moroccan Dirhams (approximately $3 billion), capturing 1% of the global promising market, stated Mohamed Mehdi Bensaïd, Minister of Youth, Culture, and Communication, in an interview with Al-Sharq.
Rabat is hosting its first video game industry expo, attended by numerous foreign and Moroccan companies involved in video game development.
The event featured Japanese video game designer and developer Takaya Imamura as its guest of honour.
Minister Bensaïd elaborated to Al-Sharq that the market development plan includes the construction of the first city dedicated to the video game industry, set to begin within weeks with an investment of about 260 million Moroccan Dirhams ($26 million).
He mentioned that negotiations are ongoing with at least four major global companies to join this initiative, with the city expected to be operational within two years.
According to Hisham Khalifi, President of the Royal Moroccan Federation of Electronic Sports, the current value of Morocco‘s video game industry stands at about $130 million. However, this figure is expected to increase significantly in the coming years due to the global and local expansion of this sector and the high interest from Moroccan youth.
The expo aims to provide opportunities for small and medium enterprises in the industry to build partnerships with banks, government financial institutions, and foreign companies to bolster investment. The global video game market is estimated to be worth around $300 billion.
The expo also saw participation from several Chinese and Korean video game companies, with officials conducting meetings with the Ministry of Youth, Culture, and Communication.
Kong Ming, a business manager at Korean ActoZ Tech, told Al-Sharq, “We are exploring the Moroccan market and may decide to invest in developing video games locally within the next year.”
To encourage Moroccan companies to invest in this industry, the Ministry of Youth, Culture, and Communication signed an agreement with the National Company for Guarantee and Financing of Enterprise to provide bank guarantees for financing their projects, along with the possibility of offering grants and interest-free loans and attracting foreign investment funds.
Hisham Znati Sarghini, head of the government company, stated to Al-Sharq, “The agreement aims to reduce risks in the field to facilitate financing for companies to invest in the video game industry, covering between 60% to 80% of the risks associated with obtaining loans.”
