Le city branding comme moteur de développement pour le Maroc ? Cas de la ville de Dakhla[City branding as a development engine for Morocco? Case of the city of Dakhla]

Today, competition and competitiveness are key factors in economic development. Inserted into a globalized economy, dominated by the laws of the market, the territories have no alternative but to stand out from each other to attract potential investors. (M E, Ferréol 2013). The use of the territorial brand (culture, musical, culinary, artisanal, tourist, industrial, etc) is one of the major innovations in the promotion of territories. This marketing strategy conceives the territory as a product that must be sold, starting from the creation of a brand image, the development of a communication strategy and a promotion plan. In this context, there is a growing interest in territorial marketing strategies by public entities in charge of territories, be they cities (Babey & Giauque, 2009), regions (Mihalis Kavaratzis, Warnaby & Ashworth, 2015), from states (Papadopoulos & Heslop, 2002). This poses the opportunity for the implementation of a city branding strategy of the city of Dakhla and this to influence the economic and social development of the region.