Morocco Climbs to 6th in Africa with $95M in Startup Funding
Only four meaningful startup exits have been recorded in Morocco in the past three years, compared to more than 20 in Egypt. This limited exit activity remains a bottleneck in attracting and recycling venture capital locally.
Morocco’s startup ecosystem is showing signs of acceleration—but also reveals growing pains beneath the surface. According to the newly released 2024 Morocco Startup Ecosystem Report by UM6P Ventures, startups in the country raised $94.96 million across 40 deals, a sharp jump from $33.26 million in 2023. This performance not only placed Morocco 6th in Africa for startup funding, but also helped cushion the regional decline in investment due to Egypt’s funding slowdown.
While this surge points to growing investor confidence, the funding landscape remains highly uneven. Just three startups accounted for nearly 65% of all capital raised. One of them, TravelTech firm Nuitée , secured a record-breaking $48 million Series A round, making TravelTech the year’s most funded sector—capturing over 53% of total investment.
FinTech came in second in deal count, with startups like Inyad , Tookeez , and ORA Technologies attracting investor interest. AgriTech also gained momentum, drawing nearly 10% of funding, while DeepTech made up 10% of deal volume—suggesting a cautiously rising appetite for frontier technologies.
However, most capital remained stuck at the early-stage level. Pre-seed, seed, and pre-Series A rounds dominated the ecosystem, while growth-stage investment (Series A and beyond) lagged behind. Morocco’s $5–10 million funding gap continues to push scale-ready startups abroad in search of capital, posing a risk to the country’s economic gains from innovation.
Only four meaningful startup exits have been recorded in Morocco in the past three years, compared to more than 20 in Egypt. This limited exit activity remains a bottleneck in attracting and recycling venture capital locally.
Despite these challenges, the report outlines a set of strategic levers that could unlock Morocco’s next leap: catalyzing late-stage funding through the Mohammed VI Investment Fund, fostering local M&A activity, supporting women entrepreneurs, and doubling down on emerging tech sectors like AI, climate tech, and advanced manufacturing.
With its early-stage ecosystem maturing, the next phase for Morocco is clear: scale or stall.
