Morocco adopts tourism promotion plan

A 10-year plan to boost Morocco's tourism industry focuses on regional distinctions.

By Mawassi Lahcen in Marrakech and Siham Ali in Rabat for Magharebia – 06/12/10

A new tourism development plan in Morocco aims to invest 177 billion dirhams (15.8 billion euros) to double the number of tourists, increase tourism revenue and to create 147,000 new jobs in the sector by 2020.

"We want to create a really strong regional product, tailored to each region's specific characteristics, and providing the necessary resources," said Hamid Addou, Director of the Moroccan National Office for Tourism.

The Moroccan government, which prepared the plan and presented it to King Mohammed VI on November 30th in the national debate on tourism in Marrakech, drew up the plans, set the goals, and prepared a capital investment fund of 100 million dirhams to pay for the initiative. The program calls for increasing tourism revenues from the current 60 billion dirhams (5.4 billion euros) to 150 billion (13.4 billion euros) over the next decade.

Tourism Minister Yassir Znagui said that the government received pledges from several Arab sovereign wealth funds and financial institutions. Znagui and Finance Minister Salaheddine Mezouar signed agreements with Bahrain Mumtalakat Holding Company, Qatar Investment Authority, the Moroccan-Kuwaiti Development Company, and al-Maabar Investments of the UAE.

The tourism minister also noted that the Moroccan government would contribute to the capital fund with an initial payment of 15 billion dirhams, and would then open the door to Moroccan and international investors.

In the meantime, seven Moroccan banks, including three branches of European banks, signed an agreement with the government in the presence of the King to fund the new plan. Among the projects are 13 new facilities for beach tourism. The seven banks promised to provide 24 billion dirhams over the next five years to finance these projects through loans covering 60% of the project costs.

Znagui said that the new plan would enhance the role of tourism as an engine for development, growth and employment, and would also enhance Morocco's openness to the world through tourism and cultural exchange. He added that the plan was prepared based on a series of consultations with local governments and that it took into consideration the abilities and qualifications of each province in Morocco and drew up provincial plans for the promotion of tourism.

The minister also pointed out that the management of the plan would be given to eight provincial agencies, in addition to a central authority that will be the contact point for matters related to tourism investments.

Meanwhile, Taleb Rifai, secretary-general of the World Tourism Organization, lauded the Moroccan tourism promotion and the country's adoption of ambitious plans that provide the necessary clarity for investors and are based on partnership between the private and public sector, respect for the environment and realization of sustainable development. Rifai said that the 2020 plan represented an extension and continuation of the 2010 plan which allowed Morocco to increase the number of tourists from 4.4 million in 2001 to 9.2 million in 2010.

Economic actors have expressed their commitment to the strategy. Mohamed Horani, chairman of the Moroccan Business Confederation, has pointed out that the country is currently one of the top 25 tourist destinations in the world. He says that the sector is proving to be of huge importance to the country, given that it is the second largest contributor to GDP and the second largest employer.

"The idea now is to improve Morocco's positioning as a favored destination for investment," Horani said.

Othmane Cherif Alami, chairman of the National Tourism Federation, said that the public-private partnership is a successful approach, which proved its worth in the 2010 vision program, and it is sensible therefore to continue along the same route until 2020. The 2020 vision also has the objective of promoting internal and family-based tourism, which will be one of the priorities.

Economist Mohamed Jouadri told Magharebia that officials will try over the next ten years to overcome the obstacles which emerged during the 2010 vision program, such as the over-ambitious scale of some projects, and the lack of investment, which restricted what was available in the various resorts.

"But it seems that Morocco is hoping to overcome these obstacles to make its new vision a reality," he said.

Source: Magharebia.com.
Link: http://www.magharebia.com/cocoon/awi/xhtml1/en_GB/features/awi/features/2010/12/06/feature-02.