Morocco’s Tourism Industry Urges Border Reopening as Global Competitors Gain Edge

"It is imperative to announce a date for the opening of the borders, even in August or later, otherwise, we risk losing the year 2021 as well," insist the hoteliers of Marrakech. They are concerned about the silence of the authorities in charge of tourism in Morocco, reports L’Économiste.

"Because in the meantime, all the competitors have taken the lead by committing to border openings in July. As a result, tour operators and planes will schedule these destinations to the detriment of Morocco," they explain. Yet, Moroccan tourism is severely affected by the health crisis related to covid-19.

For professionals, finding themselves with zero customers in April and for the rest of the high season remains an unprecedented situation. According to the National Confederation of Tourism (CNT), the gradual scenario of declines (March-December) indicates an overall loss of nearly 6 million tourists, which will result in a total of 11.6 million lost overnight stays.

In terms of turnover, the CNT forecasts a loss of more than 34 billion DH for the entire sector, including 14 billion DH for the hotel industry this year. "We expected the sector to be prioritized as in other countries," lament the tourism professionals. However, it is necessary to prioritize domestic tourism to give the sector a little boost.