Thanks to its military power, Morocco shines more and more in the firmament of fireworks. The recent report on the acquisition of drones on the African continent between 1980 and 2024, published by“ Military Africa ”, a site specializing in African military affairs, places Morocco at the top of the Maghreb countries with the largest number of drones. According to this source, the Moroccan Royal Armed Forces (FAR) acquired 233 drones from various suppliers until the end of the current year.
Morocco also ranks second in Africa in this regard, just after Egypt which has more than 260 drones in its arsenal. Nigeria is in third place with 177 drones, followed by Ethiopia with around 126 drones, then Algeria which has 121 drones, and finally South Africa with less than 100 drones.
As for the Tunisian army, it ranks seventh in Africa and third in the Maghreb, possessing approximately 59 drones, of which 24 are American-made, 13 are produced by Indian factories, and a few Australian drones. The military forces supporting the conflicting governments in Libya rank fourth in the Maghreb, with around 47 drones for the government of national unity and around 40 for the eastern government. As for the Mauritanian army, it only has around four drones, placing it in 28th position in Africa and last in the Maghreb.
Data provided by the specialized portal indicates that “ the total number of drones acquired by 31 African countries since the 1980s until today does not exceed 1,534 units. Among these drones, 1,254 are “FIXED WING” fixed-wing drones, 144 are “ROTARY WING” rotary-wing drones, and 136 are “VTOL FIXED WING” vertical takeoff and landing drones.
In addition, North African countries alone hold more than 53% of the total drones owned by African countries, i.e. 818 drones, followed by West African countries with a total of 338 drones, then East African countries with around 218 units, and finally the Southern African countries with around 160 drones.
Regarding drone suppliers for African countries, China is at the top of the list, followed by Israel, of which Morocco is a major customer in the African market. The United States ranks third among suppliers, followed by Turkey, of which Nigeria is one of the main customers.
As for the FAR, it has around 160 Israeli-made drones, as well as 26 American drones and 19 Turkish drones, all of which are fixed-wing drones. The same aforementioned source stressed that this category is preferred by many African countries due to its ability to fly long distances compared to other categories of drones.
This report is not the only one of its kind. In a recent ranking established by the American magazine “World Magazine”, the Kingdom of Morocco achieved a remarkable performance by rising to 60th place among the most powerful countries in the world for the year 2024. This recognition is due to several key factors. At the forefront, is the military and economic strength of the Kingdom. The country has been able to develop a robust defense system and a diversified and resilient economy, which allow it to stand out on a global scale.
Link to the original article: https://www.military.africa/2024/04/complete-african-drone-procurement-data1980-2024/
