The Minister of Tourism, Crafts and the Social and Solidarity Economy, Fatim-Zahra Ammor, gave the effective kick-off of the government program “Forsa” on Tuesday.
This ambitious program, announced by the government on March 11 and officially rolled out on April 7 in all regions of the Kingdom, has an envelope of 1.25 billion dirhams (MMDH) for the current year. This budget will enable it to support project leaders from the ideation phase to the actual completion of their projects, 10,000 in total, by the end of 2022.
On the one hand, the support system includes e-learning training for all the projects selected, followed by a 2.5 month incubation for the benefit of the most innovative projects. Calls for tenders have already been launched to select partner establishments from local incubators, represented by civil society organizations, specialized in supporting and monitoring entrepreneurial projects.
On the other hand, the funding component provides for a loan of honor at a zero rate, up to 100,000 MAD, including a grant of 10,000 MAD for all the projects selected. Entirely financed by the State, the program allows project promoters to repay the loan over a maximum period of 10 years, with a grace period of 2 years.
FORSA’s innovative approach, combining support and financing, provides fair, equitable and inclusive access to the skills and capital necessary for entrepreneurship, in line with the royal guidelines for the promotion of investment and employment. It is a national opportunity to develop the potential of all those who have the ideas and the motivation necessary to embark on the entrepreneurial adventure. A concrete commitment in favor of all those who have a project but lack the tools and capital to achieve it.
Regional equity is another commitment of FORSA to make business creation a lever for socio-economic development adapted to the needs of each region, while stimulating the already existing ecosystem.
In addition, the involvement of the various players in the entrepreneurial ecosystem from the first design stages has enabled the program to be deployed quickly and efficiently, with the support of a network of solid partners at the regional level, in particular the Regional Centers d’Investissement (CRI), microfinance organizations and local incubators.
The program concerns all residents in Morocco and Moroccans established abroad, aged 18 and over, whether they are bearers of ideas or entrepreneurial projects or founders of VSEs under 3 years old. Eligibility for this support does not require any diploma, qualification or experience prerequisites. All business sectors are eligible.
Project leaders can submit their file directly online via the dedicated digital platform: www.forsa.ma or request assistance from the FORSA Desks open for this purpose in the 12 regions. A telephone assistance center (5544) will also be made available to project promoters and will have the role of guiding them throughout the process, whether it concerns requests for information, applications via the platform, or more appointments for interviews, etc.
Each project submitted via the platform is examined by experts who assess, on the one hand, the level of commitment of the candidate and, on the other, the feasibility of the project and its development potential for the region. Candidates selected at this stage are then called for an interview with an expert in their regions. At the end of this stage, their files will be evaluated by a regional commission which will ratify the selected applications.
It should be noted that the deployment and implementation of this national program are ensured by the Ministry of Tourism, Handicrafts and the Social and Solidarity Economy, while the Moroccan Society for Tourism Engineering (SMIT) is responsible for piloting.
.