Because of containment measures that were taken by the government transport, many companies are suffering from certain difficulties. A return to normal is not expected before 2021, or even 2022.

The sudden cessation of several activities in Morocco and around the world, means that Moroccan exporters are faced with a new and even unique situation. All air, land and sea supply chains are influenced by the spread of the new coronavirus-Covid19.

The economic sectors that have been impacted by the COVID-19

• The exporting pharmaceutical sector suffers from a stockout in the African market, explained by the fact that each export of medicine is now subject to authorization and a study on a case-by-case basis.
• The fishing sector is itself doubly affected by two factors: first, the biological rest at the start of the year and currently, the negative impact of the virus on the supply chain of raw materials upstream, which has a direct impact on export capacities.
• The agri-food sector, has just begun to stabilize in recent weeks after several problems concerning the drop in demand, late deliveries and the cancellation of several orders.

How to overcome the Covid-19’s impact on the supply chain management

In the future, the exporters must develop  their abilities to be fast, reactive and efficient and plan for uncertainties, they  must have a flexible business model to be able to change products if necessary, target markets to focus their  efforts on a particular segment, and diversify sources of supply to reduce uncertainty.

Investors also have to secure the production chains as much as possible and reduce their foreign dependence.

All sectors must invest in research and development to study all aspects of this crisis and put in place corrective measures to overcome its consequences.

Investors must also innovate and come up with interesting plans to continue to operate and improve the country’s economy.

The Moroccan government has to support small businesses, as it had put in place strong measures to fight the pandemic; these companies suffer currently from significant losses and cannot continue to operate.

Covid-19 remains a virus that has a very significant impact on logistics activities around the world, the global economy will recover soon, if the right decisions and commercial strategies are  well implemented, to improve the performance of these various sectors.

Author

OUAHDOU Yasmine

Maritime transport is an essential element of globalization through which more than 80% of the flow of raw materials and goods are transported; maritime transport is also used for the purpose of the pandemic, but also for the purpose of the economy; decided by most countries.

At the start of March, 50% оf ship departures were canceled in Chinese ports. The rate of replenishment of these which appeared varied from 10 to 30%, causing the break in supply chains in many companies. The drastic reductions in air transport and containment measures have had a significant impact on fuel supplies. Oil prices have collapsed under the double effect of falling demand and disagreements in producing countries to limit production. As a result, a large number of petroleum plants are stopped and are being stored for overabundant oil production.

The measures taken in certain countries oblige them to meet a quarantine of 14 days before being allowed to dock when other ports were simply closed. The crews were also surveyed, placing people in very difficult situations. As for passenger transportation, it has been virtually stopped in many places.

This drop in activity results in a cessation of ship orders by ship-owners аnd a reduction in activity in shipyards. Very popular at the start of the year, Chinese and South Korean strong sites are starting to receive new orders for bulk carriers and LNG carriers.

After a slowdown of six weeks, export activity is back to normal with a rebound in volumes and a likely catch-up to replenish stocks.

Reference

Benoit, P (2020). Transport of goods: hit but not sunk by the Covid-19. Accessed (2020, June 3) at https://www.latribune.fr/economie/transport-de-marchandises-touche-mais-pas-coule-par-le-covid-19-842896.html