In September last year the Moroccan government unveiled its "Digital Morocco 2030" strategy at a ceremony in Rabat. The strategy includes several major goals aimed at leveraging the power of technology to modernise Morocco's public services and further the North African country's economic and development plans. Among the aims outlined in the strategy include accelerating "eGovernment" services, positioning Morocco as a leading African tech hub and attracting higher foreign direct investment flows as a result, as well as fostering the growth of Morocco's start-up ecosystem.
Shortly after this announcement, in October, Amal El Fallah Seghrouchini was confirmed as Morocco's new minister for digital transformation and administrative reform. Seghrouchini, who previously served as the executive president of Morocco's International Center for Artificial Intelligence, has been tasked with putting AI at the heart of Morocco's digitalisation and growth strategy.
Speaking to African Business in Rabat, Seghrouchini says that "we have two basic goals - succeeding in the digital transition and reforming Morocco's administration. For me, AI is absolutely crucial to both. Today, you cannot bring about the digital transition without AI."
Seghrouchini sees AI technology as fundamental to democratising access to Morocco's public services and boosting development outcomes. One obstacle to engaging with state services has traditionally been poor literacy. Morocco's illiteracy rate has declined in recent years but still stood at 24.8 in 2024, with illiteracy levels higher in rural areas at 38.
"Generative AI is very helpful in many settings. Rather than depending on reading or writing messages to public services, people could use their phone to record voice messages which can then be transcribed using AI," she says. "To reform Moroccan administration, we need to simplify citizens' access to services - and to do that, we need tools that can speak to people who otherwise would be left out. This use of generative AI is very helpful for this and can also reduce the gap between rural and urban areas."