Moroccan Prime Minister Aziz Akhannouch’s wealth plummets by $600 million in 2023

Moroccan Prime Minister Aziz Akhannouch has experienced a significant decline in his net worth since the beginning of the year due to a persistent drop in the market value of his industrial investments in Morocco.

According to data compiled by Forbes, Akhannouch’s net worth has decreased by $600 million since the start of 2023, dropping from $2.2 billion to $1.6 billion.

Akhannouch, a prominent businessman who was appointed prime minister of Morocco in September 2021, derives the majority of his fortune from Akwa Group, a multibillion-dollar conglomerate founded in 1932 by his father and a partner, Ahmed Wakrim.

Through the multibillion-dollar behemoth Akwa Group, he indirectly owns shares in Afriquia Gaz SA and Maghreb Oxygene. He is one of Morocco’s wealthiest businessmen and the richest investor on the Casablanca Stock Exchange.

The $600-million year-to-date decline in his net worth can be partially attributed to the slump in the share price of Afriquia Gaz SA since the year began, in addition to the decline in the valuation of his privately held businesses.

Since the start of the year, the share price of Afriquia Gaz SA, a Morocco-based group engaged in refining and marketing liquefied petroleum gas, has declined from MAD4,650 ($477.56) at the beginning of the year to MAD4,400 ($451.89) at the time of writing.

As a result of the decline in Afriquia Gaz’ shares, the market value of Akhannouch’s indirect interest of 30 percent in Afriquia Gaz, held through Akwa Group, has declined by over $25 million. The market value dropped from $490 million at the start of the year to $465 million.