Published: Sep 04, 2026 | By: Aldrich Ma

Government policies across North African countries effectively provide domestic steelmakers with a protected home market. To shield local producers from dumping by foreign competitors, these countries have established comprehensive, multi-layered systems of trade barriers. A key feature of this approach is its heavy reliance on non-tariff measures – which trade practice has shown to be among the most effective instruments for restricting imports.

Market Overview
The North African steel market is clearly fragmented. Everything depends on the local economic situation, the level of industrialisation, and the effectiveness of the government's fiscal policy. In Egypt, Algeria and Libya, rolled steel production exceeds domestic demand. In Morocco and Tunisia, the opposite is true. However, all these countries equally rigorously protect their steel producers from competition from imports.

A common feature across all countries is the absolute dominance of reinforcing bars and wire rod in the sales mix. The construction sector in North Africa is the main consumer of finished steel. China and Turkey are the leading foreign sources of steel for North African markets. When purchasing high-tech products (rails, pipes for the oil and gas industry), preference is given to European manufacturers.

Trade Barriers at a Glance

1. Egypt: The GOEIC "White List" Barrier
 

In Egypt, in accordance with Decree No. 43 of the Ministry of Trade, foreign manufacturers of steel products are required to undergo official registration with the General Organisation for Export and Import Control (GOEIC). Applications from foreign steel companies for registration have been left unprocessed for years. If a particular plant is not included on the 'white list' on the GOEIC website, no Egyptian port will physically accept rebar, wire rod and the like.

The adoption of Decree No. 43 in early 2016 was driven by a severe currency and financial crisis. The government's policy was driven by the need to preserve its remaining gold and foreign exchange reserves, stabilize the national currency, and sharply reduce the trade deficit. In the first year of implementation, Egypt's trade deficit fell by more than $9 billion.

Under pressure from the EU and the WTO, the Egyptian government issued Decree No. 195/2022 in April 2022. The procedure was formally simplified: the requirement for the minister to personally approve each plant was eliminated, a strict 15-day deadline for processing applications was introduced, and companies were given the right to appeal their removal from the GOEIC register. Nevertheless, the GOEIC remains an insurmountable barrier for steel producers, even those with international certification.

Additional Measures:

Payment Restrictions: The Central Bank of Egypt strictly controls foreign exchange expenditure. Steel and building materials are at the bottom of the list; priority is given to payments for medicines and wheat. Approval for the conversion of foreign currency for steel imports can take up to six months.

Quality Testing: Testing of imported steel products by the Egyptian Organization for Standardization (EOS) causes average delays of three to four weeks at ports.

Tender Preferences: Egyptian Law No. 5 of 2015 grants domestic goods a 15% preference in tenders. A tender for the import of reinforcing bars can only be won if a local manufacturer quotes a price that is more than 15% higher. The Public Procurement Act No. 182 of 2018 recognises a product as 'Egyptian' if the proportion of value added generated within the country is at least 40%.

2. Algeria: Multi-Stage Licensing & Payment Hurdles
Algeria is the only regional net exporter of steel. Here, comprehensive state protectionism has created ideal conditions for rapid progress in the steel industry. A mechanism similar to licensing has been in place since April 2022.

The system works as follows:

AIA Certificate: Before importing any goods, the importer must obtain a certificate from the Algerian Import Agency (AIA). The AIA maintains a single electronic database containing over 418,000 product lines manufactured in Algeria. When an application is submitted, the system checks the HS code and product range. If Algerian steelworks manufacture such products, the importer's application for an AIA certificate is automatically rejected.

ALGEX Certificate: Since 2022, the Algerian Banking Association (ABEF) has prohibited commercial banks from opening import letters of credit without an ALGEX certificate.

Import Forecast Programme (PPI): Even with a certificate, the importer must submit a PPI to the Ministry of Foreign Trade covering a period of six months or one year. The company must demonstrate to the Ministry that it has a genuine physical need for precisely those tonnes of steel. If officials suspect the importer is 'buying in excess', the volumes will be reduced or compliance refused altogether.

The introduction of licensing for steel imports in 2022 was prompted by a fall in Algeria's foreign exchange reserves from $190 billion to less than $45 billion. President Abdelmadjid Tebboune then demanded that the government reduce the trade deficit to zero and stop "burning through oil dollars" on imports.

Payment Restrictions also serve as a powerful barrier. Every import transaction must be linked to a specific local bank, which must approve the contract – a process that can take 3 to 6 months. In the spring of 2026, the Bank of Algeria cut the limits on foreign letters of credit and guarantees for commercial banks to 50% of their capital. At present, banks are unable to open new credit lines for many importers.

Tender Preferences: When tender bids are being considered, price preferences of up to and including 25% are granted to locally manufactured products.

3. Morocco: Certification as a Strategic Barrier
In Morocco, rolled steel products must comply with national standards (NM). If the manufacturer does not hold a permanent NM certificate, each incoming consignment is held at the customs warehouse in the port. Inspectors take samples for laboratory testing. Officially, it takes 2–3 weeks to receive test results, but due to 'high workload' or 'equipment breakdowns', this is often extended to 45–60 days. Throughout this period, the importer pays for the vessel's demurrage and the storage of containers at the port, which makes the transaction unprofitable.

The process of obtaining a permanent NM certificate is held up in every possible way. The procedure requires Moroccan auditors from the Moroccan Institute for Standardisation (IMANOR) to visit the supplier's factory to inspect production. Officials may spend months agreeing on dates, demanding changes to technical documentation, translations, and repeat independent tests. According to IMANOR regulations, the conformity assessment procedure should take between 5 and 15 working days. In reality, for imported steel products, it takes at least 6–9 months.

Certification of steel imports into Morocco began in 2013–2014. The main lobbyist was the local steel giant Maghreb Steel, which was on the brink of bankruptcy due to an influx of cheap steel from Europe and Turkey. The company's owners effectively persuaded the Ministry of Industry to use NM standards as a legitimate means of driving out foreign competitors. The current system of total blocking was fully established by 2020.

In January 2025, the Moroccan government introduced 16 new stringent technical standards for steel products, including sections and sandwich panels. Local steel plants receive long-term internal certificates "automatically," while for foreign companies, the procedure has been turned into a bureaucratic nightmare.

Tender Preferences: Public Procurement Decree No. 2-22-431 requires public contracting authorities to award at least 30% of contracts to local suppliers. A 15% surcharge is automatically added to the price quotations submitted by suppliers of imported goods.

4. Tunisia: Import Licensing & Certification
 

In Tunisia, import licences are issued by the Ministry of Trade and Export Development in consultation with the Ministry of Industry. Officials require proof that this rolled steel is genuinely needed by the country and cannot be sourced from local producers. Applications can take months to process, may get lost in the system, and are often subject to repeated requests for additional documentation.

Tunisia operates a digital system called Tunisie Trade Net (TTN). It links customs, banks and government ministries. To open an import letter of credit and transfer funds to a foreign supplier, the importer must upload a preliminary import declaration to the TTN, specifying the licence number. If no licence is provided, any commercial bank in Tunisia will block the payment.

Import licensing is introduced periodically for specific steel products. For example, on November 28, 2023, the authorities imposed a strict annual quota of 764 tonnes on steel wire imports and introduced an import licensing requirement for a three-year period.

Certification: National standards of the NT series are applied to rolled steel. Inspectors take samples from every imported consignment for testing at the Central Laboratory of CETIME. The process is deliberately delayed by 45–90 days. During this time, the cargo remains at the port, incurring huge fines and completely undermining the economic viability of the deal.

Tender Preferences: Public contracting authorities may apply a price surcharge to importers' tender bids or grant a percentage discount of up to 10% on locally sourced products.

5. Libya: Licensing & ACI Pre-Registration
In Libya, licensing is a fundamental, permanent and comprehensive tool. Licences are issued by joint decision of the Central Bank of Libya and the Ministry of Economy. For steel traders wishing to import cheap rebar or long products from Turkey or Egypt, the procedure is highly bureaucratic.

Libyan customs authorities have introduced an electronic system for the pre-registration of cargo — ACI. Even before the steel is loaded onto the vessel, the importer in Libya and the exporter must register the transaction on the government portal and obtain a unique ACI number. Without a licence from the Libyan Ministry of Economy, the system will not generate this number.

Steel import licensing requirements have been in place in Libya since 2007, when the country was entering a period of rapid construction growth. The authorities' aim was to maximise capacity utilisation at the local steel giant, LISCO.

In recent years, Libya has been facing a severe electricity shortage and widespread rolling blackouts. This has led to prolonged downtime at LISCO. In such cases, the authorities are forced to approve import licences on a massive scale to prevent all key construction projects from coming to a standstill.

Tender Preferences: Contractors are required to purchase rolled steel from the local state-owned company LISCO in accordance with the Regulations on Administrative Contracts, approved by Government Resolution No. 563/2007.

The Advantages of Non-Tariff Methods

Conclusion
In North Africa, a rule has been enshrined in law: "public money must remain within the country and support local workers". This implies that priority should be given to the use of locally produced steel in all sectors of consumption, and particularly in public construction projects. The only exception is Mauritania – it has no domestic production of steel or rolled steel products, so there are no barriers to entry.

In other countries, protecting the domestic steel industry is a top priority. Foreign suppliers can only enter the market with products that are not available from local mills.