Morocco launches affordable housing plan

Morocco has launched an affordabe housing plan in an attempt to provide accommodation to thousands of people who were previously unable to get onto the country's property ladder.

Speaking at the end of January, Housing Minister Nabil Benabdallah said that the initiative would give "hundreds of thousands of Moroccan families access to decent housing at unbeatable prices".

The problem has particularly affected Morocco's middle class, who make up more than half of the population, with an estimated shortfall of 20,000 units in the face of demand. The scheme's approval follows opposition from the National Federation of Property Developers, who eventually decided to support the programme at the end of December 2013.

One developer already has plans to build 3,680 by the end of this year, reports Magharebia.