Morocco: Industrial innovation, signature of an agreement for the support of VSMEs

The agreement was signed on September 1 by the Minister of Industry and Trade, Ryad Mezzour, the Director General of the National Agency for the Promotion of Small and Medium Enterprises (Morocco PME) Brahim Arjdal, and the President of the Moroccan Foundation for Advanced Science, Innovation and Research (MASCIR), Hicham El Habti.

Through this technical assistance offer in partnership with MASCIR, this agreement aims to strengthen the competitiveness of VSMEs through the deployment of a service offer for the design and development of products with high industrial added value, in as part of the business support program designed by Maroc PME.

Ryad Mezzour specifies, on this occasion, that “through this agreement, we will be able to support industrial innovation and R&D projects for the development of products carried by Moroccan VSMEs. Companies eligible for this program will thus be able to benefit from investment support and have support from the ministry in their industrialization”.

And Hichal El Habti, President of MASCIR added: “Today, the entrepreneurial dynamic that our country is experiencing requires rigorous technical and scientific support in order to stimulate a significant competitive advantage. We are delighted with this partnership with the Ministry of Industry and Trade and Maroc PME. Our commitment to put applied research at the service of industry will therefore be able to include more VSMEs, which constitute a major element of the Moroccan entrepreneurial fabric”.

At the end of this agreement, Maroc PME and MASCIR will implement programs through a technical assistance offer and financial support capped at 500,000 DH per company.

This approach will ultimately enable companies eligible for this program to consolidate their competitiveness and support their growth.

The National Agency for the Promotion of SMEs (Morocco PME) has the following main missions: the development of the competitiveness and growth of SMEs through support, advice and technical assistance actions and support for targeted and tailor-made investment generating added value and employment, strengthening the entrepreneurial ecosystem through the development of entrepreneurial support systems and strengthening the intervention capacities of local actors, the development and implementation partnerships with the public or private sector or both, for the promotion of support and guidance programs for the benefit of businesses and to develop entrepreneurial initiative.