Morocco’s Tourism Sector Awaits Delayed Government Aid Amid Contract Uncertainty

The 50,000 employees in the tourism sector, taken into account by the lump-sum allowance paid by the CNSS, have not received anything from the State since February 9, although this payment represents the public aid for December 2020. In addition, the payments for January and February have not been made, informs Le360. Yet they were officially validated as part of the contract-program signed on January 6, 2021 and which extends the system until March 31, 2021.

This agreement validated between the Ministry of Tourism, the Ministry of Finance and the National Confederation of Tourism (CNT) represents a commitment to the first approved contract-program on August 6. In addition, apart from the lump-sum allowance of 2000 dirhams to declared employees, temporary workers in tourism should also benefit from this support measure, not to mention that this contract-program should also allow tourism companies that have not registered on the CNSS platform to catch up.

However, so far the agreement has not been effectively launched. The implementing decree has never been validated and at the same time, the CNSS declaration platform has not been opened. Worse, several people doubt the adoption of the process at the next council of government. It will examine a "decree-law enacting exceptional measures for the benefit of certain employers affiliated with the CNSS, their declared employees and certain self-employed and other non-salaried persons declared to the CNSS who have suffered the consequences of the Covid-19 pandemic, related to the tourism sector", indicated a press release from the head of government.

Currently, the operators are just waiting for things to go well. Because these payments, which will have to cost around 300 million dirhams, apart from the new beneficiaries, would really help the workers in the sector most affected by the health crisis related to Covid-19.