Morocco has set an ambitious goal for road improvement in its Road Strategy for 2015-2035: raise the proportion of roads in adequate condition from the current 54 percent to 80 percent by 2035. A key compo­nent for achieving this goal is to place a stronger emphasis on road maintenance and a more efficient use of the private sector for this maintenance through performance-based-contracts. The concept — allowing to transfer the responsibility of maintenance and performance standards to the private sector — was, however, relatively new to Morocco, since much of its routine road maintenance is still done “in-house” by public sector transportation agencies. Other countries have successfully used performance-based contracts for road maintenance.  Uruguay and Argentina are among the countries having demonstrated success with performance-based contracts and where Morocco seized an opportunity for a knowledge exchange.

What has happen so far?

In May 2014, a Moroccan delegation comprising senior officials from the Ministry of Transport and the Road Directorate visited Uruguay and Argentina where they met with senior rep­resentatives from respective Ministry of Works and road agencies. Through discus­sions with key offi­cials who introduced and manage the road networks based on the performance-based-contracts concept, the Moroccan officials learned about the valuable experience of these countries to better maintain their road networks and how to successfully design and introduce a performance-based approach to road maintenance in Morocco. The Moroccan delegation also met with private sector representa­tives to learn more about the challenges local companies faced when the con­cept was introduced.

To disseminate the knowledge from the exchange, Morocco's Road Directorate organized a workshop in October 2014 with participation from Regional Directorates and the World Bank. A brochure describing performance-based contracts and the experiences in Uruguay and Argentina was prepared for the workshop. There has also been a continued dialogue between Morocco and its South American coun­terparts follo­wing the study tour.

What results have been achieved?

The study tour substantially enhanced the participants' knowledge of the use and ap­plication of performance-based contracts. A decision was taken to introduce performance-based contracts in Morocco, followed by a pilot project based on the good practice approach gained from the knowledge exchange and from tools, such as standard bidding docu­ments, guides, and technical standards provided by the World Bank. To help operationalize the concept and address the broader issue of maintenance of the road network in Morocco, discussions took place with the Moroccan authorities on further World Bank support, including through potential lending.

There is now a clear willingness by key decision-makers in Morocco to address the issue of mainte­nance, which, in effect, translates into sustainability of investments in the road sector. The im­proved sustainability and management of Moroc­co's road network will contribute to lower trans­portation costs, a strong factor in economic growth, increased employ­ment, and better access to services and markets.

The study tour substantially enhanced the participants' knowledge of the use and ap­plication of performance-based contracts. A decision was taken to introduce performance-based contracts in Morocco, followed by a pilot project based on the good practice approach gained from the knowledge exchange and from tools, such as standard bidding docu­ments, guides, and technical standards provided by the World Bank. To help operationalize the concept and address the broader issue of maintenance of the road network in Morocco, discussions took place with the Moroccan authorities on further World Bank support, including through potential lending.

There is now a clear willingness by key decision-makers in Morocco to address the issue of mainte­nance, which, in effect, translates into sustainability of investments in the road sector. The im­proved sustainability and management of Moroc­co's road network will contribute to lower trans­portation costs, a strong factor in economic growth, increased employ­ment, and better access to services and markets.