Morocco’s new government has pledged to establish a mechanism to combat exploitative intermediaries in coordination with the Competition Council, with dedicated resources, powers and operational tools, as part of efforts to strengthen market competition and curb practices that drive up consumer prices.
Under its 2026-2031 government program, the administration said the mechanism would publish the penalties imposed on offenders and operate alongside efforts to strengthen the Competition Council’s capacity.
The government also pledged to step up enforcement against coordinated anti-competitive practices and abuse of dominant market positions, while introducing mechanisms to scrutinize public procurement and combat collusion in public tenders.
The program also calls for a detailed, binding regulatory framework defining the rights and obligations of intermediaries across marketing and distribution chains. It also aims to regulate large- and medium-sized retail businesses to promote fair competition and limit abuses linked to market dominance.
According to the government, intermediaries who add no value to products can capture a substantial share of their value. In some agricultural supply chains, their share can reach between 60% and 80% of the price paid by consumers.
Sector-specific competition reforms
The government of Prime Minister Fatima Zahra El Mansouri has also pledged to overhaul sectoral regulation by effectively separating regulatory authorities from professional market operators, including in telecommunications and transport.
In telecommunications, the government plans to encourage competition and infrastructure sharing to reduce the cost of deploying very high-speed broadband networks. It also aims to improve transparency in spectrum allocation and conduct regular assessments of market power.
In transport, the program calls for updating the rules governing negotiations over international agreements on cross-border transport, establishing transparent regulations for ride-sharing services, removing exclusive operating rights and monitoring bus fares.
The government also intends to crack down on anti-competitive practices in professional services and expand pathways into regulated professions.
Additional measures include strengthening competitive neutrality for state-owned institutions and companies, converting some public entities into joint-stock companies and rationalizing their presence in competitive markets.
The pledges form part of the government’s broader agenda to improve competition, limit market abuses and address practices it says contribute to higher consumer prices.
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