Melilla Border Customs Remain Closed 4 Years After Morocco’s Shutdown

President Pedro Sanchez announced the reopening of the commercial customs of Melilla after his visit to Rabat in early April, marking the beginning of a new stage in relations between Spain and Morocco. But for now, the commercial customs are still closed. The Spanish-Moroccan working group set up after the resumption of relations continues to study the possibility and conditions of reopening, according to sources from the Melilla government delegation to EFE.

For the Confederation of Entrepreneurs of Melilla (CEME-CEOE), the commercial customs have not reopened due to a lack of political will on the part of Morocco and inaction on the part of Spain, which is not putting any pressure on the kingdom. The entrepreneurs of the autonomous city hope for the imminent reopening of the commercial customs, which will revive the goods traffic and in turn the economy of the city.

Melilla has been hit hard by the closure of the commercial customs. According to CEME-CEOE data, goods imports into the autonomous city have fallen by 70%, while commercial transactions amounted to 40 million euros in 2017, the year before the customs closure. Over the past four years, several companies have had to close, the Melilla entrepreneurs have also deplored.