Public portfolio: The new shareholder policy activated

The restructuring of the public portfolio takes another step forward. The decree approving the Government’s shareholding policy was published in the latest edition of the Official Gazette. This text constitutes the “ sole reference document ” in this field. It defines the main strategic orientations of the public shareholding policy.

Under the new philosophy for managing the public portfolio, the Government is called upon to seize restructuring opportunities, through mergers or groupings of public establishments or companies, or the dissolution and liquidation of other entities, as well as the sale of certain public companies to the private sector

In particular, it aims to enshrine the role of State-owned Enterprises (SOEs) as a strategic lever for strengthening sovereignty, a pillar for boosting private investment, a key player in the field of territorial equity and economic, social, financial and digital inclusion...

In detail, the decree defines the vision of the Government as shareholder. The latter “undertakes to guarantee the valuation of assets managed by SOEs, in compliance with the principles of transparency, convergence and mutual aid”. In particular, this momentum will foster “ the emergence of new sectors and support for innovation, in parallel with improving the quality of public services, in complementarity with the actions of the private sector ”.

The intervention of the Government as shareholder is called upon to take account of these goals. These concern either the realization of strategic economic or social interests, or the response to an exceptional situation. In the first case, “ the Government as shareholder aims to achieve these goals, which may be lasting or temporary, such as the development of a particular geographical area ”. In the case of State-owned Enterprises of a strategic social nature, the Government as shareholder must ensure a balance between the goals of financial profitability and those of public service, reads the text. When the strategic interest in the activities of a State-owned Enterprise disappears, notably when private operators reach a high level of maturity and expertise. In this case, “ the Government as shareholder is called upon, in the short term, to achieve maximum financial profitability for these SOEs ”. In the long term, the Government as shareholder will have to “ ensure the market conditions for the modernization of these establishments and companies, either through disposals, mergers, regroupings, as the case may be, in a context favoring the improvement of the value of the assets concerned ”.

Mohamed Ali MRABI