Moroccan Tourism Industry Seeks Reinvention Amid Post-Pandemic Recovery

Organized by the Regional Tourism Council Agadir Souss Massa (CRT), the meeting focused on "How to reinvent oneself in a sector in full mutation?" It was an opportunity for the players to emphasize "the crucial role played by travel agencies in the economic development of tourism and the promotion of the product of all the territories of Morocco," said Rachid Dahmaz, president of the CRT Agadir Souss Massa, recalling that the tourism sector was already in crisis, even before the pandemic.

To read: COVID-19 Devastates Moroccan Travel Industry: 80% of Agencies Shuttered

After nearly two years of health crisis that has severely affected the sector, and given the difficult resumption of activities, it was necessary to take stock and identify the challenges to be met. In an internal market mainly seasonal, reduced to school holidays and the summer season, and faced with the fierce external competition of Booking, the market share of travel agents has recorded a drastic decline that needs to be remedied.

For the participants in the meeting, the first solution is to value human capital through specialized and continuous training and to establish salary scales to motivate young people within travel agencies. In the same vein, the participants recommended organizing a day on the profession of travel agent for the attention of students.

To read: Moroccan Travel Agencies Protest Border Closures, Demand Government Aid Amid Pandemic

Issues related to the restructuring of existing entities and the implementation of a good governance process, as well as the creation of large Moroccan tour operators, were also discussed at this meeting. Travel agents are unanimous on the need to reform the tax system to facilitate the external growth of Moroccan tour operators. Experts also stressed the importance of investing more in digitalization to better position the sector and develop tourism activity.