Morocco Finance Minister on Wednesday said plans to reform, merge or dissolve some state bodies to reduce their dependency on a state budget hit by the coronavirus pandemic.

Finance minister, Mohamed Benchaaboun, told reporters that the plan could include a merger of the indebted state railway operator, ONCF, and the highway company ADM into a single entity,

Morocco expects its economy to shrink by 5% this year, with the fiscal deficit rising to 7.5% of gross domestic product and treasury debt to 75.3% of GDP. Despite a tough lockdown, it has confirmed 26,196 cases of the coronavirus.

The state has already announced some measures to help with the economic impact. Last week, King Mohammed VI announced a $12.8 billion stimulus, equivalent to about 11% of GDP.

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