This comes in a context marked by difficulties in young people's access to funding, constraints that small businesses encounter and COVID-19's effects on national economy, said the Department of the Head of Government in a statement, recalling that the government program prioritizes entrepreneurship promotion and job creation.

In response to the High Royal Directions on investment and employment promotion, especially among youth, 'FORSA' (Arabic for 'Opportunity') puts citizens' empowerment at the heart of its action, and thus provides two devices combining support and funding, said the same source.

A budget of 1.25 billion MAD will be allocated for the said program for the year 2022 and will target the support of 10,000 project leaders in all sectors of the economy, while ensuring the principles of regional and gender equity.

The support system includes e-learning training for all selected projects, as well as an incubation of 2.5 months for the most promising projects, through the mobilization of regional incubators.

For its part, the financing scheme provided for the benefit of beneficiaries consists of a  honorary loan of up to 100,000 dirhams, including a grant of up to 10,000 dirhams. All sectors of activity are eligible and the maximum loan repayment period is 10 years with a 2-year grace period.

In addition, a governance system has been set up to steer and support the implementation of the program. It consists of a strategic committee, chaired by the Head of Government, a national steering committee and regional and provincial monitoring committees.

The effective deployment of 'FORSA' relies on the mobilization of partners at the regional level, in particular the Regional Investment Centers (CRI), microfinance organizations, and local incubators.