Morocco’s government announced the removal of the butane gas subsidy, effectively adding 10 MAD to the cost of 12 kg cylinders and 2.5 MAD for 3 kg containers, stated the Ministry of Finance in a release published on Sunday.
The government sees the shift as part of a larger effort to simplify social assistance. This includes the “direct social assistance program” (helping 3.6 million households by April 2024), which uses a consolidated social register to better target aid to those most in need.
The Government aims to gradually end subsidies for common Moroccan products in the upcoming 2024 Appropriation Bill 2024, following the announcement of a Subsidy Fund Removal strategy.
The subsidy fund is a Moroccan public institution founded in 1941 to subsidize the prices of basic products: wheat, gas & oil, and sugar.
The government attributed this decision to the fact that such subsidies are a burden on the country’s budget.
Removal of these national subsidies began in 2016, when the subsidies for gas and oil were lifted during the Benkirane Administration.