Clusters in the Maghreb - Between globalization and territorialization
This study carried out by Paulette Pommier in collaboration with IPEMED, and with the particular support of the French Ministry of Europe and Foreign Affairs, is an update of her report published in 2014 entitled “Clusters in the Maghreb, towards a specific Maghreb cluster model”, which drew up an inventory of clusters in Tunisia, Morocco and Algeria.
This study, the first of its kind, had effects on both the actors and the attitudes of the public authorities, notably because of the expertise produced and the exchanges it has generated both within and between countries. In five years, following the changes in the dynamics of creation and development of clusters, “Clusters in the Maghreb, between globalization and territorialization” draws up a new map of clusters in the Maghreb to identify and analyze the changes that have occurred since 2014, such as the public policies
of the countries concerned towards clusters.
Morocco, which has been committed for more than ten years to an industrial policy focused on innovation, relies particularly on innovative clusters with high technological potential. Measures in favor of this category of clusters are one of the strands of Morocco’s strategy for a more competitive economy through innovation. In Algeria, the situation of clusters has undergone a favorable change in the last few years. A change mainly due not only to the mobilization of enthusiastic entrepreneurs but also to the commitment of the public authorities. Finally, in Tunisia, the clustering movement keeps developing, led in particular by the network of competitiveness hubs and technopoles set up in the early 2000’s.
This report also seeks to study the dynamics of promising cooperation between clusters on both sides of the Mediterranean and to open the analysis to Libya and Mauritania in order to cover all the Southern Mediterranean countries participating in the “Dialogue 5 + 5”, which latest summit was held in Marseille on June 24, 2019.
Based on her observations and her meetings with the main protagonists (the representatives of clusters, but also the relevant institutions, the beneficiary companies, the territories involved), Paulette Pommier puts forward her research findings whilst emphasizing the need to appreciate the clustering movement and the importance of government initiatives to encourage and
support these high-potential ecosystems.