Rabat“Open the borders”. Professionals in the tourism industry in Morocco demonstrated on Wednesday to denounce the border closures, in force for two months to curb the spread of the Omicron variant but which is weighing down this vital sector of the economy.
Gathered in front of the headquarters of the Ministry of Tourism in Rabat at the call of the National Association of Travel Agencies (ANAV), nearly 200 tour operators called for the reopening of the borders, closed since November 29 and at least until January 31.
« The closure is a very hard blow to us since we are now at a standstill while our expenses are still fixed, » lamented Mimoun Azzouzi, owner of a travel agency in Témara, near the capital.
“We were forced to close because of the pandemic and despite that, we maintained the salaries of our workers,” he explained to AFP.
These tour operators say they are « excluded » from the two billion dirham (190 million euros) tourism support plan approved on January 18 by the government.
The aid provides for the payment of compensation of 2,000 dirhams (190 EUR) per month during the first quarter of 2022 for all employees in this sector which accounted for nearly 7% of Moroccan GDP in 2019.
The State has also decided to allocate one billion dirhams (EUR 95 million) to support hoteliers to prepare for the resumption of activity (maintenance, renovation, training, etc.).
These measures do not appease the anger of operators who also demonstrated on Wednesday in Marrakech, the tourist capital of the Shereef kingdom, as well as in other tourist cities such as Essaouira, on the Atlantic coast, Erfoud and Zagora (south), near the Algerian border, according to local media.
“The people want the borders to reopen,” chanted hundreds of protesters, if not more, in Marrakech, according to videos posted on Facebook.
Questioned Monday in parliament, the head of diplomacy Nasser Bourita considered that it was “important to reopen the air borders as it is important to follow the evolution of the pandemic”.
« The opening of borders is important but remains linked to the guarantee of the necessary conditions, capable of preserving the health of visitors and Moroccan citizens », argued Mr. Bourita.
The closure of airspace has sparked protests from the large Moroccan diaspora, especially since private jet companies operate at exorbitant prices — more than 10,000 euros per passenger for a one-way ticket to Morocco –, according to information sites and testimonies on social networks.
If the peak of contaminations with the Omicron variant of Covid-19 seems to have been reached during the week of January 17 to 23, according to the Ministry of Health, the authorities are concerned about an increase in deaths and cases in intensive care.
The government must decide by January 31 on a possible reopening of the borders.
Other demonstrations are planned if Moroccan airspace remains closed.
source: france24.com
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