Entrepreneurialism in the globalising city-region of Tangier, Morocco

This paper inspects the territorial and state restructuring of the globalising city-region of Tangier. It argues that recent economic growth and transnational connections follow new forms of entrepreneurial development that aggravate social and spatial inequalities. The analysis shows that these forms of urban and regional management are embedded in the neoliberalised, yet monarch-centric Moroccan state. Analysis of local governance arrangements demonstrates the pivotal importance of an elite cadre of urban managers within the monarchic power structure. Fieldwork evidence documents the emergence of megaprojects as preferred vehicles for entrepreneurial development through site observations, indepth interviews and archival research. The Tanger City Center project presents a case that illustrates the social and spatial implications of a restructuring territorial economy and the effects of new polarities being overlaid on existing urban and regional geographies. The paper concludes with a reflection on the comparative and relational lessons that can be drawn from Tangier's restructuring.