5 - Reforming the Kingdom

Summary

This chapter examines the political economy of democracy aid in Morocco in two sections. In the first, I focus on the context in which political and economic reforms began in Morocco and describe the foundation of authoritarian power in the country. The second section discusses the context in which US democracy aid began in the country. US democracy assistance in Morocco was executed later than similar efforts in Egypt and at significantly different funding levels. I discuss reasons for this variation as well as how that strategy was formulated over time. This section traces the United States’ increasing support in its democracy strategy for economic reforms over political aid for democracy that would mirror the regime’s own priorities and how its conception of democracy in the country changed to support the commercial and security interests of the regime and the United States.