Foreign Investors Detained in Morocco Over Ride-Hailing App Use

The arrest of the two foreign investors took place near the Kenzi Tower hotel. After their arrest, the two police officers confiscated their passports. They also took the driver’s license from the driver who had come to the hotel to transport them. After the incident, the police returned the passports to the investors. But the driver won’t be so lucky. His car was seized and then sent to the municipal pound.

The two foreign investors were surprised by the police action, as transportation via apps is considered in Saudi Arabia and Belgium to be a fast, ordinary and very efficient service. But Morocco is one of the very few countries in the world where transportation via apps is prohibited.

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In response to a written question from the Haraki group in the House of Representatives last September, Mohamed Abdeljalil, Minister of Transport and Logistics, had stated that the provision of passenger transport services via modern digital applications and platforms without authorization constitutes an activity contrary to the laws and regulations in force and that his department is adopting an approach based on coordination with the competent services of the Ministry of the Interior and the stakeholders concerned, in order to eradicate this phenomenon.

He had also announced that his ministry would carry out a study aimed at developing a national charter for the development of sustainable and inclusive mobility, in order to establish the fundamental principles and objectives on which the future mobility and transport system of the kingdom should be based. This charter will address several issues, including how to manage these new methods of travel in Morocco, particularly in urban areas.

The legal and regulatory provisions in force regarding road passenger transport, in particular Dahir No. 1.63.260 of 24 Joumada II 1383 (November 12, 1963) relating to transport by motor vehicles on roads, as amended and supplemented, as well as the implementing texts, impose the obligation for road passenger transport service providers to the public to obtain prior authorization to carry out this activity, as well as specific authorizations for each vehicle used for this purpose, Abdeljalil had recalled.