Morocco Unveils Ambitious Plan to Double Tourist Numbers by 2026

"Between 2010 and 2019, Morocco has only attracted 3.6 million additional tourists... The time has come to get out of our torpor and show more ambition and boldness if we want to play in the big leagues," said Fatim-Zahra Ammor, outlining the situation of Moroccan tourism. The sector was hit hard by the health crisis and benefited from the emergency plan put in place by the government last year, recalls La Vie Eco. According to the minister, the government’s vision is to "double the number of tourist arrivals to reach 26 million in 2030, and thus position Morocco among the largest global destinations".

The new 2023-2026 roadmap for the sector, developed in consultation with professionals, plans to reach 17.5 million tourist arrivals in 2026, create 200,000 jobs and reach 120 billion dirhams (MMDH) in revenue (compared to 90 MMDH in 2022), said Fatim-Zahra Ammor, stressing that this roadmap is based on 9 thematic sectors (Beach & sun, Desert & Oasis, business tourism, Nature, etc.) and 5 cross-cutting sectors (gastronomy, festivals, etc). "These sectors highlight the natural potential and authentic specificities of the country, and we will give them all the means to develop," she added.

To achieve this new vision, the government has set up the National Interministerial Tourism Commission (CNIT). The Moroccan Tourist Engineering Company (SMIT), for its part, will work on themes such as digital, culture and gastronomy, in order to improve products, offers and hotel capacity. An envelope of 6.1 MMDH has been planned for the implementation of this roadmap. "It’s been a long time since we’ve been advocating for this sector, which supports more than 2.5 million Moroccans, to finally be considered a real locomotive of the Moroccan economy. We dreamed of it," rejoiced Hamid Bentahar, president of the National Confederation of Tourism (CNT).

"The Brazilians love us. But if there are no flights to bring them in, we’ll do small numbers. Notoriety is an issue. But on the other hand, there is connectivity, which is a fundamental," warned this professional. For Adel El Fakir, CEO of ONMT, the goal is to double the seat capacity by 2030, from 14 million currently to 28 million. In this sense, the Office, in partnership with 10 airlines, has launched 35 new air routes serving 8 Moroccan destinations for the summer 2023 season. "We can no longer say that we do not have the means for our ambitions," supported Hamid Bentahar, calling on industry professionals to mobilize to make Morocco one of the greatest destinations in the world.