Two icons of African stability

One is a democracy; the other, a monarchy. But one thing that stands Ghana and Morocco out among fellow African countries is political stability.

In contrast to many of its neighbours, Ghana has had two decades of stable democracy, with free and open elections, and where electoral disputes are resolved by judges, not armed factions.

It also has comparatively low levels of corruption and a lack of broader social instability.

This political track record rightly inspires enthusiasm both in and towards Ghana. Stable governments, combined with its lucrative deposits of oil, gold and agricultural commodities, have made Ghana a key destination for foreign investors.

This, combined with rapid economic growth, has helped bolster investment, as have strong relations with the likes of the UK, the US, the EU and, increasingly, emerging powers such as China, India and South Africa. In fact, the country often punches above its weight in the diplomatic arena.

Like Ghana, Morocco also ranks as a ‘’medium risk” country, ahead of every other country in North Africa in terms of safety and stability, according to a new report.

“Morocco is a monarchy of North Africa, relatively stable, with a business environment relatively strong compared to other countries in the region, and a moderate level of political risk. The difficult transitions that took place in Tunisia, Egypt, Syria and Libya were a lesson for the Moroccan population, which reduces the pressure on King Mohammed VI, who has strengthened the role [of the government and parliament] while retaining the ultimate power,” said an analysis accompanying the map by the consulting company AON.

The map, which has been published annually for 19 years, measures the level of political risk in several emerging countries in the world as an informational tool for companies looking to invest abroad.

Three of Morocco’s neighbors on the Mediterranean Sea – namely, Algeria, Libya, and Egypt – were classified as “high risk countries,” and Mauritania, which neighbors the kingdom from the south, fell in the same category. Tunisia fared better, as it was listed in medium-high risk category.

The report says it expects Morocco to grow in the long-term as it has managed to attract many European companies to conduct their Africa operations from Casablanca, but the authors added that the neighboring continent’s economic vulnerabilities and the kingdom’s unpredictably hostile weather conditions could hurt future economic growth – as it has this year.

The 2015 report also identified some key indicators for foreign investors considering opportunities in Morocco, including the default risk probability – reflecting the chances a government does not repay its debts – which amounts to 0.96 percent and the likelihood of confiscation – measuring the probability that a business is confiscated or appropriated by the local government – which stands at a mere 0.54 percent.

With its 32,987,206 people, Morocco is the 38th largest country in the world by population; and, the 58th largest country in the world by area with 446,550 square kilometers.

But would Ghana and Morocco let their shared commonality of political stability rub off on their fellow African countries? Can these two good apples make good the whole bunch?

Ironically, ties between the two countries run deep from 1961 when Ghana's first President Osagyefo Kwame Nkrumah and Morocco's King Mohammed V played crucial roles in the formation of the Organisation of African Unity (OAU, now African Union or AU) through their strategic leadership of the Casablanca Group.

The Casablanca Group which also comprised Algeria, Egypt, Guinea, Libya and Mali pursued a radical, progressive stance in the then burgeoning Africa emancipation struggle, and shared values on the question of African unity, which culminated in the founding of the Organisation of African Unity (OAU) in 1963.

Ghana and Morocco have also been important members of the non-aligned movement since 1961.

Morocco proclaimed the principle of non-alignment immediately after independence in and subsequently launched a struggle for the evacuation of foreign troops from the country as well as the closing of foreign military bases. In 1961, the last French troops withdrew from Morocco. In 1963, the United States was also compelled to close its military bases in Morocco.

Similarly, Ghana, at independence, adopted a policy of non-alignment with any of the major world powers; but rather adopted a pragmatic outlook in seeking economic cooperation with a number of countries, both in the East and West.

Both countries are equally committed to good neighbourliness, regional economic wellbeing and maintenance of peace and security locally and in the sub-region and beyond so much so that they are among Africa's leading contributors of military troops involved in UN peacekeeping operations.

Today, both traditional allies may have beaten different economic tracks and churned different results decades after their initial collaboration on pan-African unity, but with a new understanding in Accra and Rabat, the two stars of Africa can again lead the way to a new era of stable African states holding hands together to this century truly Africa's century.

African Leaders

Ghana's President John Mahama (1)

Ghana's President John Mahama (2)

Morocco's King Mohammed Vi