Luxury Sofitel Resort in Agadir Shuts Down Amid Tourism Crisis, Staff Layoffs

The grand palace of Agadir would have been heavily impacted by the economic crisis caused by the covid-19 pandemic, which has affected all sensitive sectors, particularly the tourism sector, reports Rue20.

Due to lack of customers, the hotel would have incurred significant deficits, the site reported, adding that some human rights associations suspect the establishment of exploiting this situation to avoid its commitments to its staff.

A major provider of jobs and an active contributor to the national GDP at 11%, tourism has always been considered an accelerator of development and a reducer of regional inequalities. However, the measures of the state of health emergency have pushed the sector to the brink of collapse.

Severely hit, the tourism industry could suffer losses estimated at 138 billion dirhams between 2020 and 2022, according to figures communicated by the National Confederation of Tourism. For the moment, the measures put forward by the Economic Monitoring Council are proving insufficient, according to professionals in the sector.