56 PERSPECTIVES ON BUSINESS AND ECONOMICS | VOL 42 | 2024 rural communities have built a medical system around this knowledge and trust this way of life. When communities are given access to Western medicine, they are more likely to trust herbal medicine and prefer it to Western medicine (El-Hilaly et al., 2003). Because of the complex ecosystems in Morocco, it is difficult to cultivate many MAPs outside those regions where they are endemic. This creates a reliance on local communities to forage these plants. About 61% of MAPs in Morocco are wildly sourced and not cultivated and 37% are actively farmed (El-Hilaly et al., 2003). Cultivated MAPs, such as Capparis spinosa (capers) and varieties of the genus Thymus (thyme), are exported frequently, but wild MAPs provide a wider range of species with different and important medicinal properties and are preferred to their cultivated counterparts because private land or other agricultural resources are not needed (Schippmann et al., 2006). This puts emphasis on conserving wildly sourced plants to continue the practice of traditional medicine in Morocco as well as maintain the supply for export, providing income to the rural communities. Besides contributing to health care, MAPs provide an important avenue for jobs and income for rural populations, and that potential is growing as a result of global demand (Bouiamrine et al., 2017). In 2022, the worldwide MAP market generated almost $150B in revenue, with an estimated projection reaching $387B by 2032 (Gotadki, 2021). Income from MAP exports can increase, if rural communities are informed of sustainable harvesting techniques and trained in making good business decisions (US Agency for International Development [USAID]: Morocco, 2012). Due to the importance of MAPs to traditional practices and health care and the expected revenue from the MAP sector, it is critical that Morocco implement more sustainable practices to ensure these plants are not exploited as they are today. Medicinal plants in rural health care About 64% of Moroccans live in urban areas, which has led to a localization of health care within cities. There is subsequently a disproportionate allocation of resources and funding in favor of urban areas, leaving rural communities vulnerable to health issues and without modern health care. As of 2023, it is estimated that 48% of Moroccans have no health coverage. Even those who may have access to health care but no health-care insurance need to pay for their health care out of pocket (Mahdaoui & Kissani, 2023). These out-of-pocket expenses can create financial distress for those in lower socioeconomic classes in rural areas. To explore the presence of medicinal plants as health care in Morocco, El-Hilay et al. (2003) interviewed and surveyed the Taounate people of North Morocco, and Kachmar et al. (2021) studied the people in the Taza region of Morocco. Both studies reveal the lack of health care in the rural regions and the increased reliance on medicinal plants for health care. The researchers found that Western medicine was unavailable to most of those populations, and, when it was available, many reported greater trust in folk medicine. They also found that in the 47 rural communities they surveyed, almost every family used or knew about medicinal plants and incorporated them in their daily lives (El-Hilaly et al., 2003). Their findings emphasize the importance of preserving medicinally used plants in Morocco as health care. El-Hilay et al. (2003) identified 102 medicinal plants commonly used by the indigenous Taounate. In terms of applications, 24.9% were for gastrointestinal distress, 12.2% for urogenital purposes, 9.8% for bronchopulmonary issues, and 9.2% for skin-related health issues. Many of these plants have been tested scientifically and demonstrate medicinal properties. For example, Trigonella foenum-graecum, Ammi visnaga, and Nigella sativa are herbs with antidiabetic properties and are valued by rural populations for these purposes. In fact, many of the plants identified by El-Hilay et al. are used in modern medicine. More broadly, greater than 25% of modern medicines are derived from uncultivated plant species (Bouiamrine et al., 2017). The study by Kachmar et al. (2021) looked at the region of Taza. They interviewed 200 people to understand the distribution of plant uses in the region. Examples included Mentha pulegium, for alleviating symptoms of the common cold as well as treating digestive ailments based on the plant’s antioxidant and antimutagenic properties. The study recorded endemic plants, such as Artemisia huguetii, for gastrointestinal infections, and the most used plant in the study, Origanum compactum, for treating nausea but which also has antibacterial effects. The researchers found that those interviewed attributed the frequency of their usage to how easy the plants were to harvest and the richness/concentration of medicinal substances in the plants. The market for medicinal and aromatic plants MAPs are becoming more popular worldwide as consumers in Western countries integrate more ho-
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