Although the Moroccan healthcare industry is much more advanced than many other countries in Africa, in general, the Moroccan healthcare industry is still inefficient compared to international standards, which limits its growth.
The Moroccan government is increasing the coverage of free healthcare services, especially for people living below and close to the poverty line. Although the government has taken important measures to expand the coverage of universal healthcare in recent years, there are still about 38% of the population. No medical insurance.
Morocco's pharmaceutical industry is the biggest driving force for the growth of the healthcare industry. Drug demand is mainly met by locally produced generic drugs, and Morocco exports 8-10% of its annual domestic production to all of West Africa and the Middle East.
The government spends about 5% of GDP on healthcare. Since about 70% of Moroccans go to public hospitals, the government is still the main provider of health care. There are five university hospital centers in Rabat, Casablanca, Fez, Oujda and Marrakech, and six military hospitals in Agadir, Meknes, Marrakech and Rabat. In addition, there are 148 hospitals in the public sector, and the private healthcare market is growing rapidly. Morocco has more than 356 private clinics and 7,518 doctors.
Current market trends
The medical equipment market is estimated at 236 million US dollars, of which imports are 181 million US dollars. imports of medical equipment account for about 90% of the market. Since the local medical device manufacturing industry is still in its infancy, most rely on imports. The prospects for medical equipment in the public and private sectors are better. Public or private institutions are no longer allowed to import refurbished equipment. Morocco submitted a new law in 2015 that prohibits the purchase of second-hand or refurbished medical equipment, and it went into effect in February 2017.
Main competitor
At present, local production in Morocco is limited to disposable medical supplies. The United States, Germany and France are the main suppliers. The demand for equipment from Italy, Turkey, China and South Korea is also increasing.
Current demand
Despite domestic competition, the production of disposable products, magnetic resonance imaging and ultrasonic scanning equipment, X-ray equipment, first aid equipment, surveillance and electro-diagnostic equipment, computer tomography equipment, and ICT (electronic medical, equipment and related software) market prospects Optimistic.
