Rabat, March 20, 2017 – The second edition of the Moroccan Sustainable Tourism Day and
Responsible (JMTDR), was held this Monday, March 20, in Rabat, under the theme: “Morocco celebrates the Year
International Sustainable Tourism for Development”.
This second edition brought together more than 300 national and international guests, including several
members of the government, African ministerial delegations, international organizations,
tourism professionals, as well as members of civil society.
During the opening speech of the event, Mr. Aziz AKHANNOUCH, Minister of Agriculture and Fisheries
maritime, Acting Minister of Tourism, declared “Morocco wants to carry its voice and that of the African Continent
as a reference destination in sustainable tourism”.
Mr. Zhu SHANZHONG, Executive Director of the World Tourism Organization (UNWTO) welcomed the involvement of
Morocco – as an official partner – in the program of activities planned for this International Year
(IY2017).
A convention of “Agreement between the World Tourism Organization and the Ministry of Tourism of the Kingdom
of Morocco for sponsoring the International Year of Sustainable Tourism for Development” was
signed.
Madame Nada Roudiès, Secretary General of the Ministry of Tourism of Morocco, Mr. Said MOULINE, Director
General of the Moroccan Energy Efficiency Agency (AMEE), Mr. Abderrafie ZOUITEN, Managing Director of
the Moroccan National Tourism Office and Mr. Fouzi ZEMRANI, Vice-President of the National Confederation of
Tourisme du Maroc, reviewed the achievements of the tourism sector and projected the outlook for 2017.
It was explained that sustainability must be present in development planning as well
tourism as in the operations of investors and tourism actors or in the behavior of
tourists and citizens.
During a ministerial panel, Ms. Elcia GRANDCOURT, Director of the Organization’s Africa program
World Tourism Organization (UNWTO), Ms. Anastancia NDHLOVU, Deputy Minister of Tourism and Hospitality Industry
from Zimbabwe, Mr. Tahirou BARRY, Minister of Culture, Arts, Tourism of Burkina Faso, discussed
the contribution of the African continent to the International Year of Sustainable Tourism for development.
concrete testimonials of projects carried out by tourism professionals, local actors or the
civil society came to illustrate the different actions deployed in Africa.
The JMTDR was also intended to be an opportunity to strengthen public-private partnerships for promotion
sustainable and responsible tourism on the national territory. The Ministry of Tourism announced the
deployment of a broad awareness campaign across the entire territory. The objective is to raise awareness
the general public to the notion of sustainability in the tourism sector as well as to make them adhere to the Charter
Moroccan Sustainable Tourism. On this occasion, the Ministry of Tourism thanked its partners for their
involvement and their commitment (Ministry of National Education and Professional Training, MASEN,
National Railway Office, Moroccan National Tourist Office, Moroccan Engineering Society
tourist, Royal Air Maroc, the National Confederation of Tourism, the National Federation of Industry
Hotelier, Morocco Tourism Observatory…)
The afternoon will be devoted to the presentation of the #sustainabletravel campaign,produced in collaboration
with the couple of Moroccan globetrotters, Amal and Anass Yakine. Launched last December, this operation
invites the Moroccan and foreign public to discover the best tourism initiatives, committed to the
promotion of sustainable and responsible tourism in Morocco. The capsules retracing the 6 stages of the journey
(Chefchaouen, Dakhla, Aoufous, Nkob, Ouarzazate and Marrakech) will be screened in plenary and then will be
broadcast on social networks in the coming weeks.
Finally, the highlight of the JMTDR will be the presentation of the Morocco Sustainable Tourism Trophies in their
7th edition. For this edition, 13 projects were nominated in 5 themes: Environment and
Biodiversity, Sustainable territory, Culture Tangible and intangible heritage, Sustainable event, Equity and
social responsibility. The winners of the Morocco Sustainable Tourism Trophies will be rewarded to close this beautiful day.
source: PRESS INFO
