The UAE Are Not Investing $15 Billion in Morocco by Chance
The billions invested by the UAE in Morocco conceal a much broader strategy. A new report shows how Rabat and Abu Dhabi are gradually building an economic axis linking the Gulf, Europe and, above all, Africa.
The report published by the Observer Research Foundation Middle East on August 11 now speaks of a genuine “geo-economic alliance.” This alliance is no longer based solely on the political ties between the two monarchies, but on trade, investment and, above all, connectivity.
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The figures give an indication of the rapprochement. The UAE has become the leading Arab investor in Morocco, with more than $15 billion committed to the kingdom. Non-oil trade between the two countries had already reached $1.3 billion in 2023, up 30% year on year.
But the real change in scale lies elsewhere. Since the declaration signed by Mohammed VI and Mohammed bin Zayed in Abu Dhabi in December 2023, the two countries have placed on the same table the high-speed train, ports, airports, water, energy, agriculture, tourism, financial markets, data storage and even the Nigeria-Morocco gas pipeline.
Morocco as a Gateway to Africa
For ORF, this accumulation of projects is gradually taking shape as a much broader axis. The UAE has the capital and an international investment strategy, while Morocco has infrastructure oriented toward Europe and the Atlantic as well as an economic and diplomatic network deeply established in West Africa.
The Atlantic African gas pipeline is one of the most ambitious examples. Valued at around $25 billion, it is expected to link Nigeria to Morocco by crossing eleven other West African countries. The UAE has officially included this project among the sectors in which it wishes to establish an investment partnership with Rabat.
This logic is already visible within Morocco. In 2025, a consortium bringing together, among others, TAQA Morocco, Nareva and the Mohammed VI Investment Fund launched a massive water and energy program: desalination, water transfer, new renewable capacity, a gas-fired power plant and a 1,400-kilometer ultra-high-voltage line. Planned investments are approaching 130 billion dirhams by 2030.
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Abu Dhabi’s interest therefore goes far beyond the returns from a few Moroccan projects. In ORF’s analysis, the two countries are building a complementarity: the UAE’s capital and financial power are matched by Morocco’s geographical position, infrastructure and openness to Africa. Rabat is thus becoming one of the pillars of the UAE’s economic strategy in the western part of the Arab world.
