Morocco signs Rapid Response deal with World Bank for faster crisis relief

The Minister of Economy and Finance Nadia Fettah Alaoui held a working meeting in Rabat with Ousmane Dione, the World Bank's new Vice President for the Middle East and North Africa (MENA), in office since April 16, 2024.

The two parties signed the Rapid Response Option (RRO) agreement with the World Bank Group (WBG), the ministry said in a statement. «An important milestone in the Kingdom's ability to respond quickly to emergencies and provide crucial support to its citizens», the statement reads. «The RRO is a key element of the WBG's Expanded Crisis Preparedness and Response Toolkit, designed to enable client countries to more effectively and rapidly deploy resources from their existing banking portfolios in times of crisis».

«Under this innovative agreement, Morocco can access up to 10% of its portfolio's undisbursed balances with the World Bank Group for rapid response actions. This flexible resource reallocation mechanism provides the government with immediate liquidity to respond to disasters or emergencies», stresses Fettah's department.

For the record, in April 2023, the Executive Board of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) approved a two-year agreement in favor of Morocco under the Flexible Credit Line (LCM), designed for crisis prevention, in the amount of around $5 billion.

On Monday at the House of Representatives, Fouzi Lekjaa, Minister Delegate in charge of the Budget, indicated that Morocco had not yet drawn on this financial reserve.