On October 2025, the French industrial giant Safran announced an investment of more than 3.4 billion dirhams (MMDH) in Morocco. Within MidParc in Nouaceur, the company will develop two projects: a maintenance and repair (MRO) site for LEAP engines, and an assembly site for LEAP-1A engines.
Morocco ranks fifth among the most dynamic countries in the world in aeronautics, and first in Africa
Once the factory becomes operational at the end of 2027, Morocco will occupy second place worldwide after France in terms of engine assembly capacity. This is a major turning point for the Moroccan aeronautics sector, as engine assembly represents the most complex part of manufacturing an aircraft.
The kingdom was already among the recognized players in the industry. In December 2024, Afaf Saidi, Director of Aeronautics, Railway, Naval, and Renewable Energy Industries at the Ministry of Industry, placed Morocco fifth among the most dynamic countries in the world in aeronautics, and first in Africa.
Morocco has managed to establish itself, in twenty years, in one of the most closed industrial sectors in the world. Through discreet battles, relentless lobbying, and technological gambles. A look back at its ascent.
📑 Sommaire : https://t.co/KxYqIz8OWz
🛎 Abonnement :… pic.twitter.com/Lqy7ovFuR4— TelQuel (@TelQuelOfficiel) November 24, 2025
Interviewed by TelQuel, Adil Jalali, president of the Moroccan Aerospace Industries Group (GIMAS) and of the Institute of Aeronautics Professions (IMA), explains this progress by the presence of highly specialized suppliers and major players such as Safran.
“We have moved from a model centered on subcontracting to a dynamic of co-design and co-development with major international contractors,” he summarizes.
More than 150 companies established
Morocco has multiplied by ten the presence of aeronautics companies on its territory in one decade. From 10 companies in 2001, the country rose to 100 in 2012. Today, more than 150 companies operate in strategic fields: new-generation composites, embedded electrical systems, precision machining, maintenance, and assembly of complete units.
Among major manufacturers, several have established a Moroccan subsidiary: Safran, Airbus, Boeing, Thales, Pratt & Whitney, Dassault. Other giants may follow. The Brazilian aircraft manufacturer Embraer, already in partnership with Royal Air Maroc, is thus considering setting up in Morocco. Last April, an Embraer delegation visited the kingdom to assess local industrial capacities with a view to potential joint projects.
In the defense sector, the American company Lockheed Martin, the world’s number one, is considering setting foot on African soil and is contemplating establishing its regional headquarters in Morocco. Regarding Morocco’s ambitions in aeronautical defense, Adil Jalali mentions “several maintenance and co-production equipment projects currently under development, in partnership with international manufacturers.”
The network of aeronautics companies generates significant socio-economic benefits. At the last Paris Air Show, the biennial aeronautics event held from June 16 to 22, 2025, in the Paris region, Ryad Mezzour, Minister of Industry, shared some figures: nearly 26,000 jobs and a turnover of 26 billion dirhams. The minister hopes to see these numbers double by 2030.
Export-driven momentum
Between 2021 and 2022, aeronautics exports rose from 16.42 billion dirhams to 22.17 billion dirhams. Since then, this figure has continued to grow, reaching 26.45 billion dirhams in 2024, according to the Exchange Office. The sector represents nearly 6.6% of national industrial exports.
From August 2024 to August 2025, the aeronautics sector recorded the third-highest growth rate with +5.6%. For the year 2024, the annual growth rate stands at 14.9%, notably thanks to the increase in sales within the assembly ecosystem.
These figures should continue to rise if Morocco succeeds in increasing its local integration rate. This rate was 35% in 2022 and has now reached 42%. To exceed 50% by 2030, a medium-term objective, Jalali is counting on Morocco’s presence in high value-added specialties: design, testing, special processes, engineering and applied R&D. He also mentions the importance of “the establishment of engineering centers, research hubs, and certification laboratories in partnership with major contractors”, which could become a decisive lever.
Morocco has a rare asset: the MidParc industrial zone in Nouaceur, dedicated to aeronautics
Morocco has a rare asset: the MidParc industrial zone in Nouaceur, dedicated to aeronautics. Located a few kilometers from Casablanca’s Mohammed V Airport, this zone concentrates the aeronautics network around the airport, a configuration that few countries possess, according to a source close to the sector. More than 80% of the revenue of companies in the sector comes from the Casablanca region, which also hosts more than three-quarters of aeronautics jobs.
Training, a pillar of development
Training is mainly concentrated in Nouaceur, with the Institute of Aeronautics Professions (IMA) and the Specialized Institute for Aeronautics and Airport Logistics Professions (ISMALA).
Other Moroccan universities also contribute to training qualified engineers. Ryad Mezzour indicated that Morocco trains 23,000 engineers each year, of whom 400 move into the aeronautics industry. The minister highlighted the presence of 42% women in the sector.
Adil Jalali explains employment growth through “a continuous upskilling of technicians, engineers, and production managers”. He notes that “training is one of the major foundations of the success of the Moroccan aeronautics sector”. For the next five years, training will integrate breakthrough technologies into curricula: industrial digitization, predictive maintenance, artificial intelligence, collaborative robotics, and energy transition.
Since its creation, the IMA has trained 17,000 qualified technicians, including 5500 in pre-hiring training, and continues to train more than 2000 trainees per year. Created a few years later, ISMALA also trains technicians specialized in professions related to maintenance and repair (MRO).
MRO, a late development
The field of maintenance and repair (MRO) remains a relatively weak point in the Moroccan aeronautics sector. The Safran project strengthens this branch, which could have developed earlier. In 2021, Libra Capital, the investment fund of the American Libra group, considered creating a hub dedicated to MRO in the Oriental region, near Bouarfa Airport. Despite the announcement of 10 business units concentrating top aeronautical services, the project was ultimately abandoned.
Morocco is now attempting to make up for this delay. Adil Jalali is counting on training and its integrated approach, which makes it possible to train technicians according to the needs of industrial players. This approach positions the kingdom “as an African center of excellence for aeronautical training and MRO”, according to him.
A 100% Moroccan aircraft by 2030?
By 2030, Morocco has set the objective of producing a 100% Moroccan aircraft, Ryad Mezzour announced in February 2024
By gradually developing its capabilities in aeronautics, Morocco is displaying far-reaching ambitions. “By 2030, Morocco has set the goal of producing a 100% Moroccan-made aircraft”, Ryad Mezzour announced in February 2024. The kingdom is currently involved in several strategic technological families: engine systems, aerostructures, advanced composites and precision engineering.
Will it then be possible to assemble an aircraft from A to Z within five years? “It’s a very strong ambition, but achieving it requires methodical progress through several critical stages”, comments Adil Jalali.
It is not enough to produce the parts, but to master the integration of major subassemblies: engines, structures, electrical systems and avionics.“Each phase requires not only a transfer of technology, but also the development of local expertise in engineering, certification, and the management of complex programs”, Jalali explains. He describes a gradual skills progression, starting with mastery of specific segments and then moving to the integration of modules, in order to coordinate and assemble an entire aircraft.
Morocco’s medium-term ambitions are to “consolidate mastery of structures, electrical systems, avionics, and engines, while developing the capabilities needed to cross into new horizons”, projects Adil Jalali. He notes that this development vision is inspired by other emerging nations that have today become global references in aeronautical assembly.
Written in French by Salomé Krumenacher and Yassine Majdi, edited in English by Eric Nielson
