Measuring What Matters: Why Morocco Needs Its Own Entrepreneurial Vitality Index

The essential in one sentence: Morocco already has all the ingredients — an official label, GITEX cohorts, emerging venture capital — but no composite indicator links them; without this index, policymakers and donors are flying blind.

The Observation

Since June 2026, the Africa Entrepreneurial Ecosystem Index (AEEI), led by the Allan Gray Centre for Africa Entrepreneurship, Utrecht University, and the Innovation for Policy Foundation, has provided for the first time a continental framework of 21 indicators to compare African ecosystems. This is real progress — and a missed opportunity if Morocco settles for appearing as a single line among 30 countries, without a regional breakdown.

Furthermore, in just a few years, the country has accumulated several layers of official recognition for startups (the Jeune Entreprise Innovante label since 2019, Morocco 100 and 200 cohorts for GITEX Africa, over 600 listed support structures) without any instrument measuring whether this stacking actually produces more economic vitality, or merely more labels.

Why Now (Horizon Scanning, 1-3 years)

Three signals converge: AFCON 2025 and the 2030 World Cup are pushing the State to structure several economic sectors under the pressure of international visibility; the AEEI creates a methodological precedent replicable at the regional scale; and institutional donors (U.S. DFC, European Global Gateway) are looking for clear country entry points to guide their financing — a Moroccan regional index would become that entry point.

Recommendations

• To public authorities (ADD, Ministry of Digital Transition): Commission a regional adaptation of the AEEI rather than a competing index — international comparability is an asset, not a constraint.
• To donors: Condition part of the ecosystem funding on the production of financing and relationship data (currently almost non-existent in Moroccan public registers), a sine qua non for any credible index.
• To existing data platforms (ADD registers, community directories): Adopt a common open format so that future indices do not have to restart manual collection from scratch.

Method

Note constructed according to a STEEP scan + horizon scanning (Anglo-Saxon school, 1-3 year horizon), the format best suited to an issue in rapid political transition rather than a long-term structural disruption.

References

• Stam, E., Nkontwana, P., McDonald, R., Murenzi, R., Addo, K. A., Bayuo, B., Baah, B., Riezebos, S., & Gelissen, T. (2026). Measuring national entrepreneurial ecosystems in Africa. World Development, 202, 107357.
• Leendertse, J., Schrijvers, M., & Stam, E. (2022). Measure twice, cut once: Entrepreneurial ecosystem metrics. Research Policy, 51(2), 104336.
• Crotti, R., Potter, J., Shah, P., & Stam, E. (2025). Data and methods for entrepreneurial ecosystem diagnostics. OECD SME and Entrepreneurship Papers.
• Bell-Masterson, J., & Stangler, D. (2015). Measuring an entrepreneurial ecosystem. Kauffman Foundation Research Series.