Overview
The state is the primary healthcare provider in Morocco, with 85 percent of supply provided by public hospitals and 15 percent by private centers. However, spending remains unbalanced. In 2022, the public system accounted for only 40 percent of health care spending, with the private sector accounted for 60 percent. There are five university hospital centers, in Rabat, Casablanca, Fez, Oujda, and Marrakech. The country also counts 149 public hospitals and 12,034 physicians in the public sector as well, as a separate military healthcare system with six hospitals and a medical center. The Moroccan government has several multi-year plans to strengthen the current healthcare system through the development of new hospitals, increasing the number of doctor and nurses in training, and opening the market to private investment. To speed the sector’s reformation, the government allocated $2.4 billion to the healthcare sector in 2022.
The private sector healthcare market includes more than 360 private clinics, heavily concentrated in the Casablanca-Settat and Rabat- Salé-Kénitra regions, with 13,545 physicians and a capacity of 10,346 beds.
Since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, Morocco has received over $4 billion in aid from domestic and international sources to bolster its healthcare infrastructure and curb the spread of COVID-19. Eighty-one hospitals, including military field hospitals, and 32 consultation centers have been upgraded and equipped across different cities to care for COVID-19 patients.
COVID-19’s long-term impact on the healthcare system in Morocco is difficult to predict but the budget for recovery efforts and investment in human resources are expected to increase. Upgrading public hospitals is a national priority, as well as public-private partnerships to support healthcare infrastructure and scientific research. Morocco is vigorously seeking to develop self-sufficiency/local manufacturing of drugs, vaccines, and PPE such as masks, gloves, gowns, overshoes, and head coverings.
Leading Sub-Sectors
In May 2018, the Ministry of Health introduced the National Healthcare Plan 2025 with a budget of about $2.5 billion of investments including $1.5 billion for the improvement of hospital capacity and $1 billion for the reinforcement of various national health and disease-control programs. Leading sub-sectors include:
- COVID-19 Test Kits
- Ventilators and respirators
- ICU Equipment
- Magnetic resonance imaging and ultra-sonic scanning equipment
- X-Ray equipment
- Cancer Treatment
- Hospital infrastructure
- Emergency aid (equipment and services)
- Monitoring and electro-diagnostic equipment
- Computerized tomography equipment
- ICT (E-medicine, equipment, and related software).
Opportunities
Hospital Infrastructure
To bolster the country’s healthcare system, Morocco plans to build eight new regional teaching hospitals, 29 urgent-care hospitals, and four university hospitals over the next decade. Within the Al Hoceima, Rabat, and Agadir regions the government plans to add 3,354 hospital beds with a total spend of $1.1 billion. In addition, the government plans to rehabilitate and remodel 21 regional (CHR) and provincial (CHP) hospital centers to add a further 3,254 beds with a total budget of $440 million.
Medical Equipment
The Moroccan medical device market is estimated at $236 million, with $191 million in imports in 2021. China, Germany, and the United States supply the majority of the equipment, with increasing competition from Italy, Turkey, and South Korea. The Moroccan government plans to develop emergency and mobile hospital units, for which the Ministry of Health will issue multiple tenders over the next five years. Notably, the government has prohibited the import or sale of second-hand or refurbished medical devices and equipment per a February 2017 law, to improve equipment quality.
Cancer Treatment
The Lalla Salma Foundation for the Prevention and Treatment of Cancer was founded in 2005. This non-governmental organization has improved the quality of cancer management and access to cancer care for Moroccan patients. Currently, Morocco has 23 cancer centers – 11 public and 12 private – that treat over 40,000 new cases annually. Within the Ministry of Health’s plans, Cancer treatment equipment has been identified as a priority investment area.
Resources