© EuroMed@Change 2013 1
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Building EuroMed partnerships
This guide is a Doing business toolkit dedicated to
clusters, SMEs, or entrepreneurs interested in
developing business partnerships in the tourism
sector in Morocco. It provides an overview of the
main opportunities available for the private sector, as
well as concrete and useful data to those interested
to go further (contacts, agenda of events, etc.).
ReferencesThe Mediterranean Business Guide, focus
on Tourism in Morocco has been prepared by the
Fondation Sophia Antipolis under the
EuroMed@Change Project, a Preparatory Action
initiated by the European Parliament and
implemented by the European Commission (DG
Enterprise and Industry).
EuroMed@Change proposes new dynamics for SME
and cluster internationalisation between Europe and 4
targeted partner countries: Morocco, Tunisia, Egypt
and Lebanon. It is managed by four organisations
from across Europe (ANIMA Investment network as
Project leader, the European Business Innovation
Centre Network, INNO AG and the Fondation Sophia
Antipolis as partners) and it coordinates with more
than 45 associated regional business, finance and
innovation networks.
Authors
This Business guide has been prepared by Jean-Noël
Durvy, with contributions from Nadège Bouget from
the Fondation Sophia Antipolis. ANIMA Investment
network provided its support for the proofreading
(Manal Tabet), the FDI data (Zoé Luçon, Amina Ziane
Cherif) and the layout (Lauriane Ammouche)
Disclaimer
This publication has been produced with the support
of the European Commission. The contents of this
publication are the sole responsibility of Fondation
Sophia Antipolis and can under no circumstances be
regarded as reflecting the views of the European
Union.
Copyright
© EuroMed@Change May 2013. No part of this
publication may be reproduced without express
authorisation. All rights reserved.
1. Mediterranean overview...............................p.5
2. Market trends and opportunities...................p.6
3. Foreign direct investments..............................p.7
4. Key players.....................................................p.9
5. Recent National policies.................................p.11
6. Selected programmes & initiatives...................p.13
7. Major business events....................................p.14
Table of contents
List of acronyms
ANIMA-MIPO: Mediterranean Foreign Direct
Investments and partnerships announcements
Observatory implemented and managed by
ANIMA
FDI: Foreign Direct Investment
MED10 countries: Algeria, Egypt, Israel, Jordan,
Lebanon, Libya, Morocco, Palestine, Tunisia,
Turkey.
CAGR: Compound annual growth rate
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Mediterranean Overview
A challenging context
Tourism is vital for the economy of most South and
East Mediterranean countries. It accounts for an
essential part of the GDP, and, as a very labour
intensive activity, generates a significant number of
jobs. It also has a strong ripple effect on other
productive sectors such as agriculture, industry and
services.
Mediterranean tourism (Southern Europe included) has
grown from 58 million international arrivals in 1970 to
306 million in 2012 according to the World Tourism
Organization. The Mediterranean is one of the world’s
leading tourism markets with approximately 30% of
international arrivals for more than 40 years.
International tourism generated €4.3 billion of revenue
across the Mediterranean Basin in 1970. In 2011, it
generated €174 billion of revenue, a multiplication by a
factor of 40 compared to 1970.
For the last two decades, the eleven countries of the
Southern Mediterranean (Algeria, Egypt, Israel, Jordan,
Lebanon, Libya, Morocco, Palestine, Syria, Tunisia and
Turkey) have recorded the highest growth rate in
inbound world tourism. In the same period, domestic
tourism also increased rapidly. This trend came to an
abrupt halt in early 2011 during the Arab Spring
turmoil, but seems to resume in 2012 and 2013.
Political uncertainty has the potential to impact
negatively on visitors’ perceptions. Swift
implementation of a communications response is crucial
to reassure tourists that the destination is safe,
accessible, ready and able to receive visitors. It is also
important to have a diversified tourism product to cater
to different customer segments and motivations.
Business and MICE tourism act as good support and
buffer to downturns in the leisure tourism segment.
Sustainable tourism
The development of sustainable tourism appears to be
a priority for Tunisia, Morocco, Egypt and
Lebanon, in particular with the development of
ecotourism. With 46,000 km of coastline, the number of
tourists in the Mediterranean basin is 80%
concentrated on the coast. Sustainability of
Mediterranean tourism goes through the diversification
of the tourism offer, valuing the Mediterranean
diversity: ecotourism, cultural, urban, rural and
religious tourism. Moreover, since some years now, a
change in customer behaviour has been registered.
Indeed, the increase in number of “short” holidays
favour trips to closer destinations while the emergence
of theme trips (ecotourism) and targeted tourist activity
such as hiking, golf has boosted new forms of tourism
offers. The tourism market is therefore more
segmented and retaining tourists have become a very
difficult task. In order to give a boost to their tourism
industry, the MED countries have therefore to adapt
their products to new customer expectations, work on
their competitive differentiation and identify
development priorities. The new trends for the
development of tourism can enrol into the context of
responsible tourism which is characterised by a respect
for the environment and culture of the people of the
territories, which leads to the need to establish a true
environmental policy: sustainable tourism taking into
account economic, social and environmental impacts.
Health and wellness tourism
Morocco, Tunisia, Lebanon and Egypt have a
great potential for medical and wellness tourism.
Health tourism comprises all travel activities for a wide
range of health and wellbeing purposes such as
healthcare, health assessment, surgery and operation,
plastic surgeries, beauty, healing, cure, rehabilitation,
convalescence, combined with leisure, recreational and
cultural activities at the visited destination. Tunisia is
already well established in this sector aiming for strong
growth, compared to Lebanon and Egypt. Egypt is
considered has a new entrant, will face severe
competition.
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Market Trends and Opportunities
An exponential growth
Tourism in Morocco is well developed, with a strong
tourist industry focused on the country's coast, culture,
and history. Morocco has been one of the most politically
stable countries in North Africa, which has allowed
tourism to develop.
Some categories are emerging as key areas for growth.
These include golf and sports tourism in general,
eco-tourism and health and wellness tourism
Sports tourism, a developing niche
Golf tourism is being leveraged as a strong revenue
generator given the profile of this category’s targeted
customers, who are generally high spenders. The natural
environment in Morocco is not only ideal for the
development of large golf courts, but also for sports such
as skiing and trekking in areas such as the Atlas
mountains, which are also interesting areas to exploit.
Health and wellness
Health and wellness tourism is also a growing
niche, fuelled by the rising number of resort and hotel
spas, as well as by the increasing importance of
medical tourism, mainly driven by demand for plastic
surgery. It has grown at a high rate in recent years.
While spas represents the largest niche in this
category, medical tourism saw stronger growth with a
10% current value CAGR (Compounded Annual Growth
rate) over the review period, compared with around
8% for spas. Despite the medical tourism category
being rather underdeveloped, Morocco is gaining some
leverage and reputation in one key area: plastic
surgery. Clinics in the affluent districts of Rabat are the
most popular for this type of medical tourism. The
clientele on the other hand mainly comprises tourists
from the region and Moroccan expatriates who travel
back home to seek medical treatment. Prices in
Morocco are highly competitive, at 20% of the average
prices in Europe and the US. This has started to create
a buzz among international tourists as well in recent
years, as Morocco upgrades its facilities to cater to a
growing number of medical tourists. The health and
wellness category is expected to see a 6% constant
value CAGR over the forecast period, to reach Euro 0.8
billion in 2016, most of which will continue to be
generated by spas. Medical tourism is expected to
grow at a faster rate with a 6% CAGR, slightly higher
than the growth predicted for spas. However, this
niche remains relatively low in value. More promotional
efforts by the government are expected to help boost
medical tourism, and this goes hand-in-hand with a
national vision to improve healthcare services in this
country.
Ecotourism, a relatively new tourist offer
Supported by the authorities through Vision 2020, the
"sustainable tourism" niche is now receiving a great
deal of attention. It aims to put Morocco into the top 20
most popular tourist destinations in the world. With a
programme of contracts signed with the State, eight
regional centres will develop environmentally-friendly
tourism, promoting Morocco's national heritage, nature
sites, and offering activities focused on sports and well-
being. Morocco has been nominated to be the President
of the Global Partnership for Sustainable Tourism in
2013.
Hiking, horse-riding, paragliding, green tourism, crafts,
interaction with the local population, guest houses, etc.
have proved to be very popular with European tourists,
particularly those from France, Germany, Great Britain
and Scandinavian countries. Morocco is also seeing a
growing Russian clientele, which is appreciative of both
luxury and authenticity. This wealthy class of tourists
will choose for example to spend the end-of-year
holidays camping in the middle of the desert, in a five
star setting.
“Sustainable tourism is booming in Morocco,
and is the only sector of the industry that
can claim to be flourishing, with double-
digit growth,…”
Thierry Tarot, CEO of Terres d'Amanar, a nature park
dedicated to ecotourism forty kilometers from
Marrakesh.
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Foreign Direct Investments
Between 2005 and 2010, amounts of foreign direct
investments are around € 30 billion over this period
combined. In addition, in 2009, Morocco was the only
Mediterranean countries to have increased more than
6% while the world market decreased by 5%.
Sectoral tourism incentives:
Exemption of import duty preference for all capital
equipment needed for the promotion and
development of the project
VAT exemption for capital goods, machinery and
equipment acquired in Morocco for a period of 24
months from the date of commencement of
business of the company
Exemption from import VAT for a period of 36
months for capital goods, machinery and
equipment acquired on importation.
Total relief of the SI of turnover in foreign
exchange business and hotel for a period of 5
years from the year in which the first
accommodation was made in foreign currencies
and a reduction of 17.5% over this period.
Total exemption from IR to the amount of
turnover in foreign currency by the hotel
companies and for a period of 5 years and a
reduction of 50% over this period.
To remove the constraints on the access to financial
resources, Vision 2020 considers the establishment of
an instrument for national and international investment
mobilization: the Moroccan Fund for Tourism
Development (FMDT). Investment premiums will be
implemented taking into account the level of risk
perceived by investors for each type of product and for
each destination.
To strengthen its commitment in supporting the
implementation of Vision 2020, the banking sector is
willing to mobilize a budget of 24 billion DH.
Aside from commercial banks responsible for financing
the sector, funds for national investments were created
to support the dynamic development of tourist projects.
Some of them are Actif Invest, Madaef, H Partners,
capital T and Saham Hotels.
Moroccan fund for tourism development (FMDT)
Implemented by the State and other public bodies, the
FMDT formalises the proactive engagement of the state
in this sector. It is intended to increase the capital of
FMDT over 10 years from its establishment to EUR 1.34
billion. The FMDT will be able to raise important
national and international funds.
An agreement establishing the "Wessal Capital" Fund
was signed on November 2011, between the FMDT and
"Qatar Holding LLC" (Qatar), "Aabar Investments PJS"
(UAE) and Kuwait Investment Authority "Al Ajial
Investment Fund Holding". The "Wessal Capital" Fund
will help carry out the proactive engagement adopted in
the tourism sector to boost investments supporting the
implementation of major Vision 2020 projects.
Azur Credit line To accompany and accelerate the realization of
strategic projects of the Vision 2020, the Moroccan
banks agree to mobilize an initial budget of EUR 2.2
billion over the period 2011-2016.
“In Morocco, there is economic
development. Extension of airport
infrastructure, fast-growing
infrastructure, political will to make the
country move ahead, variety of
destinations in the country ... all these
are vital assets. Morocco meets several
conditions as a great destination.”
Gilles PELISSON, Accor group
FDI and partnership projects announced in Tourism in Morocco (2003-2012, ANIMA-MIPO)
0
5
10
15
20
25
0
1000
2000
3000
4000
5000
6000
2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012
Invested amounts (€m) Number of FDI projects
Number of partnerships
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Morocco FDI and partnership announcements in Tourism (2003-2013, Source ANIMA-MIPO)
The 10 biggest Tourism FDI announcements since 2003 (source ANIMA-MIPO)
Investor Origin Date Project FDI (€m) Type
Fadesa Spain 2003 Creation of Mediterrania Saidia, a tourist mega-resort with 8 hotels in Saidia
1500 Greenfield
Emaar Properties UAE 2006 Emaar Properties to invest 1.4 billion dollars in a tourist project in Oukaïmeden, Morocco, the only ski resort in Africa
1129.03 Greenfield
Atelier d'Art Urbain
Belgium 2004 Sea resort in Essaouira 1000 Greenfield
Emaar Properties UAE 2006 Emaar Properties and ONA Group develop Bahia Bay, a USD 1.2 billion project, located midway between Casablanca and Rabat
967.74 Brownfield
GFH - Gulf Finance House
Bahraïn 2006 Bahraini Gulf Finance House to build Royal Ranches, a luxury hotel residence in Marrakech
806.45 Greenfield
GFH - Gulf Finance House
Bahraïn 2006 Gulf Finance House to build Royal Resort of Cape Malabata, a luxury hotel residence located near the Straits of Gibraltar, in Tangiers province
483.87 Greenfield
Orascom / Oued Chbika Développement
Egypt 2009 The property developer in 65/35 JV with CDG to launch the construction of the Chbika tourism complex, 50 km south of Tan-Tan
350 Greenfield
Renta / Mixta Africa
Spain 2005 Construction of half a dozen resorts and 2 golf courses on the Atlantic coast for a budget of 370 million euros
340 Greenfield
Urbagolf Spain 2007 The promoter to invest MAD 3.7 billion in a gigantic resort project in Souiria Qdima (Essaouira), creating 2 000 jobs
339.15 Greenfield
Fadesa Spain 2006 Fadesa selected for both Smir et Laguna Smir projects, located in the 'Tamuda Bay' area in Northern Morocco
324 Greenfield
Origin of the FDI announcements in Tourism in Morocco (in number of project, 2003-2012, ANIMA-MIPO)
42
2014
107
22
106 6
0
5
10
15
20
25
30
35
40
45
France Spain UAE Kuwait USA Other EU Other
Gulf
MED Other
countries
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Key Players
A focus on the Moroccan National Tourist
Office (MNTO)
It is responsible for promoting and marketing Morocco
as a destination within Morocco and abroad.
Mission
The Moroccan National Tourist Office aims to adopt an
expert marketing approach to achieve the objectives
set in the context of the 2010 vision. By ensuring
Morocco's strong positioning as a destination, our
operations have positive results for society, the
preservation of our cultural and environmental
heritage and our country's economy.
Leadership
Its role is to promote cultural and coastal resources,
as well as developing select niche themes which place
Morocco among the sought-after tourist destinations.
Our aim is to stimulate internal tourism and attract
foreign tourists to Morocco through a new policy of
sustainable management of the range of destinations,
with a focus on anticipation and monitoring of
demand. It is also a question of encouraging tourists
to prolong their trip, visit several destinations and
return to the country.
Vision 2020 – Creation of new entities
A high authority for tourism and tourism
development agencies are to be launched in
2013 with broad powers and new projects to boost
destinations and directing the future of Morocco’s
tourism industry. The Ministry of Tourism is looking to
accelerate the pace of development and obtain the
support of the private sector. These new bodies will
decide which new tourism projects will be developed
in a given location. The higher tourism authority will
be composed of several ministers and officials and 8
members of the private sector.
The tourism development agencies will gradually
replace the regional tourism centres. They will be led
by a board of directors from the public and private
sectors and will have extensive powers. The more
mature destinations of Agadir and Marrakech which
represent two thirds of tourism arrivals will be the first
to be affected by the new measures.
Our partnership with Ynna Holding is an
unparalleled opportunity for the development
of Golden Tulip hotels in Morocco. Following
the opening up of the Algerian market in
2012, this new partnership reflects the
growing importance of North Africa in Louvre
Hotels Group’s international development
strategy. It forms part of the more general
approach of strengthening the Group’s
position in this region.” Pierre-Frédéric Roulot, Chairman and CEO of Louvre Hotels
Group
Louvre Hotels Group continues its expansion in Morocco with its Golden Tulip brand (February 2013)
Louvre Hotels Group has announced the signature of a
partnership agreement with the Moroccan Group Ynna
Holding. Running for a renewable 8 year period, this
contract covers the management, operation and
marketing of the Ryad Mogador Hotels Chain, the
tourism and hotel division of Ynna Holding. The twelve
hotels of the Ryad Mogador Chain (3,000 rooms) will
become, thanks to this partnership, “Mogador Hotels by”
Tulip Inn, Golden Tulip, or Royal Tulip depending on
each individual establishment. Thanks to this
partnership, Louvre Hotels Group becomes a first-tier
hotel group in Morocco, with nearly 4,600 rooms and
1,600 others under construction. The agreement allows
the international group to take a major step forward in
its expansion in this key country, and confirms its
international growth strategy: forming alliances with
local companies in order to better understand the local
market.
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Government & Governmental organisation
Ministry of Tourism Its mission is to develop and implement government policy on tourism. To this end, it is particularly in charge, to develop, implement and evaluate the strategy of tourism development in coordination with the authorities concerned.
http://www.tourisme.gov.ma
The Strategic Committee of Tourism The Strategic Committee of Tourism gathers the main Government Ministers concerned by tourism (Interior, Economy and Finance, Tourism). Its mission: Ensure the implementation of an unified tourism policy.
Regional Tourism Centre Support and develop the tourism industry in the context of the general economy of the country
List and contacts available on
http://www.tourisme.gov.ma/francais/1-Administration-tourisme/4-PartenairesInstitutionnels/Crt.htm
Institutional Partners
Moroccan Agency for Tourism Development (SMIT)
SMIT aims to be the initiator of innovative projects and an actor in the field of engineering and tourism development, able to design general and specific studies on supply and tourism demand in Morocco.
http://www.smit.gov.ma
Moroccan National Tourist Office (MNTO) The MNTO is responsible for promoting and marketing Morocco as a destination within Morocco and abroad.
http://www.visitmorocco.com
Moroccan Investment and Development Agency (MIDA)
MIDA is a financially autonomous public institution, in the form of a legal entity. MIDA is the national body in charge of the development and promotion of investment in Morocco. Its mission is to establish a structure and provide guidance for investors. It also constitutes takes charge cooperating and coordinating promotional activities both in Morocco and abroad.
http://www.invest.gov.ma/
Moroccan Tourism Observatory The main tasks of the Tourism Observatory relate to the collection, processing and publication of all relevant information to the tourism sector, in particular, on the national and international situation, competition, competitiveness destination, investment…
http://www.observatoiredutourisme.ma/
National Federation of Tourism (FNT)
It groups together all occupations related to tourism. FNT consists of 184 full members, consisting FNIH (National Federation of Hotel Industry) FNAVM (National Federation of Moroccan Travel Agencies), STT (Tourist Transporters' Union), FNR (National Federation of Restaurateurs) and FLV (Federation of Car renter).
http://www.fnt.ma/
National Federation of the hotel industry (FNHI)
The National Federation of the Hotel Industry, established in the early sixties, consists of 15 Regional Associations of the Hotel Industry (Arih) and seven hotel chains with more than 1,500 housing units, including 600 guest houses located in different regions of the Moroccan territory.
http://www.fnih.ma/
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Recent National Policies
Vision 2010
Vision 2010 was the strategy developed by the
Moroccan government in concert with the private
sector in 2001 to serve as a roadmap for the tourism
sector until the year 2010, and to allow the Moroccan
tourism to compete effectively with other countries,
such as Tunisia or Egypt. The targets of the strategy
included attracting 10 million tourists by 2010,
compared to 4.4 million in 2001, creating 600,000 new
jobs, compared to a total active population in 2006 of
11.3 million (generating 48 billion Euros in revenues
over the 2002-2010 period, compared to annual
revenues in 2001 of less than 3 billion Euros, and
increasing the hosting capacity to 230,000 beds ,
compared to 97,000 in 2001 (Ministry of Tourism of
Morocco). The Moroccan Government’s ambitious
development plans for the country’s industry continued
in 2011, with efforts to implement Vision 2020, and the
legacy of Vision 2010. While Vision 2010 did not realize
all of its objectives, many were attained and have been
revisited under Vision 2020. The government continues
to seek greater investment from abroad to help
complete the projects planned under Vision 2020.
Vision 2020
Vision 2020 is the extension of the national tourism
strategy that started 10 years ago and at that time was
called Vision 2010. Tourism in Morocco had a proactive
strategy launched with several structural measures
being taken over the past years. It was a very serious
and dynamic vision, which allowed Morocco to double
the number of tourists – from 4 million in 2004 to
roughly 10 million in 2010, to triple the income of the
sector, to double the bed capacity in Morocco and to
position tourism today as one of the main economy
sectors in Morocco representing roughly 10% of the
GDP. For Mediterranean countries, 2008-2009 was one
of the most difficult periods in reason of the economic
crisis. While regression was everywhere in the
Mediterranean countries, Morocco was the only country
that recorded a 6% progression, thus proving that it is a
strong and resilient model of betting on the high quality
tourism. An average spending for a tourist in Morocco is
around € 620 while, for example, in Tunisia it is € 195.
Vision 2020 comes to capitalize what has been done
during 2010, but also to learn from the mistakes and
improve. A new dynamic has been projected and a high
ambition: Getting Morocco into the world’s top
twenty destinations. This will be done by tripling the
income of the sector, increasing its GDP shares and, last
but not least, creating employment. The target is to
have more than a million young people working directly
in the tourism sector and 4-5 times more than that
indirectly.
2020 is based on three main principles:
The first one is diversity – thanks to the diversity
of the country: Mediterranean Sea, the Sahara,
the mountains (ski 45 minutes from Marrakech),
the cedar forests, the dunes, the Atlas Mountains.
Morocco offers a big diversity and proximity, as
tourists can move from one place to another
within few hours and completely change the
natural environment.
The second thing is culture and authenticity and
this is what will make Morocco strong and different
as a destination compared to their neighbour
competitors.
The last one is sustainability – it is the heart of
the Moroccan strategy environment, the friendly
approach to the sector. Morocco has virgin
beaches, a lot of virgin forests and the country
aims to capitalize on that. That, again, is another
way of making the destination different from
others around the Mediterranean.
Developing key cities
Morocco is strong in regional tourism promotion for
each of its destinations. Leading cities such as
Marrakech, Casablanca, Agadir and Tangiers have their
individual tourism promotion boards in charge of
boosting tourism flows. These cities’ tourism
infrastructure is also constantly being upgraded. Cities
from Casablanca to Fès and Agadir are all undergoing
major changes and improvements. Other cities are also
likely to follow as new plans are laid out for cities such
as Tangiers, Tetouan, Rabat and Ouzararate. Vision
2020 focuses on such regional developments as well
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The travel accommodation category in Morocco is still
relatively undersupplied. One of the main targets of
Vision 2010 was to add rooms and beds to this
environment in order to cater to a growing tourism
market, and to address both domestic and
international tourism demand. With the new Vision
2020 initiative aiming to bring more than 18 million
tourists to Morocco, travel accommodation has to
follow. There are a number of new outlets opening
across the Kingdom, with a strong luxury orientation in
the city of Marrakech, which is set to become home to
a Four Seasons, Park Hyatt and Mandarin Oriental.
However, budget hotels are also needed in this
market, and brands such as Accor’s 2-star Etap are
also being developed in Morocco. Plan Azur is also
another development set to bring another 180,000
new beds to the market by end of 2020.
Factors of success – Vision 2020
A major success factor of the Vision 2020, with regard
to various issues that will face (cross sector -
regionalization-sustainability) depends on the ability of
Tourism sector to implement a new governance of the
sector. A High Tourism Authority will be created: it
should be a public-private instance involving regions,
which will be responsible for ensuring the consistency
of national and regional strategies, coordinate, monitor
and evaluate their implementation. To materialize the
integrated management approach of territories, Tourist
Development Agencies will be created in parallel. Their
main missions are to monitor the implementation of
regional roadmaps, develop the attractiveness of
destinations and oversee strategic projects to ensure
their effective implementation. These agencies will
become the single contact point on all matters related
to tourism. They will have all the support, expertise
and skills of national bodies in charge of tourism. This
ambitious strategy will direct investment flows to new
destinations while developing sophisticated new
products. It will require significant national and
international financial resources. The first key measure
is the creation of a Moroccan Fund for Tourism
Development (FMDT) which embodies the proactive
engagement of the state in the sector to stimulate
strong investment to support the implementation of
major projects of Vision 2020. This fund, financed by
the state and the Hassan II Fund for Economic and
Social Development for an envelope of EUR 1.3 billion,
will aim at capitalizing nearly EUR 9 billion, with funds
from friendly countries. The second key measure:
premiums will be put in place to support investment
and towards it emerging or less developed areas.
Finally, the third key measure shows the engagement
of the banking sector: the mobilization of an envelope
of EUR 2.2 billion from banks for projects considered
as strategic in the framework of Vision 2020, including
Azur project, and responding to access conditions in a
pre-defined specifications agreed.
OBJECTIVE IN FIGURES – VISION 2020
Doubling the size of the sector
200 000 new beds
Double touristic arrivals
Triple domestic trips
2nd economic sector
470 000 new direct jobs
Double touristic receipts to reach 140 billon
DHs
To raise Morocco by 2020, to become one
of the world’s top 20 tourist destinations
and a model of sustainability in The
Mediterranean Destinations
THE ‘'MOROCCO RESPONSIBLE TOURISM AWARDS”
It is an initiative launched by the Ministry of Tourism and
the Moroccan National Office of Tourism.
The ‘'Morocco Responsible Tourism Awards” are designed
to enlist the Moroccan travel industry in sustainable
development by ensuring the preservation of Morocco's
unique assets: its natural environment, population,
values, culture and traditions.
One objective is to recognize and promote tourism
entities that have taken the lead in responsible tourism,
by highlighting their contributions and by encouraging
new endeavors and responsible projects.
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Selected Programmes & Initiatives
Six major structural projects, implemented and
funded by the state, regions and the private
sector will be implemented:
Azur 2020 Program, which is the continuation of
the Plan Azur, project that integrated the strategic
Vision 2010 and implemented six new bathing
resorts: Establishment of a considerable Morocco
seaside offer internationally competitive.
Strengthen Morocco seaside resorts on both
Atlantic and Mediterranean shores by completing
the Azur project 2010 and developing new
products in the South (Souss and Sahara).
Program Green / Eco / Sustainability: Valuation of
natural resources and rural areas in respect to
socio-cultural authenticity of host communities.
Developing an additional green/nature range by
means of innovative best-in-class sustainable
development products ‘eco lodges, desert resort,
…)
Heritage and Legacy Program: Promotion of the
Moroccan cultural identity through the structuring
and valuation of tangible and intangible heritage of
the Kingdom together with the construction of
coherent and attractive tourist products. Enhancing
the range of cultural experiences on offer by
making the most of Morocco’s tangible and
intangible heritage: Developing specific
accommodation, reconversion of historical
monuments, building museums, enhancing and
adding value to traditional festivals.
Animation Program, Sport & Leisure: Creating
consistent animation offers, varied and
complementary to the basic tourist infrastructure in
order to consolidate Moroccan tourism and make it
more competitive and attractive to many tourists.
Developing a range of international class cultural
and leisure events to enhance the attractiveness of
tourist destination based on a full programme of
events: leisure cities, thematic parks and resorts…
Niche Program with high added value (or business
and welfare): Strengthening the position of
Morocco as a tourist destination for Business,
welfare and health. Creating infrastructures that
can host major international gatherings and setting
up synergies with sports, well-being, exhibition and
cultural sectors.
Biladi Program, one of the main priorities of Vision
2020 which envisages the creation of seven tourist
resorts dedicated to domestic tourism in the areas
most sought by Moroccan citizens: Strengthening
the tourist offer for natives through a suitable
product that takes account of their habits and
customs.
Seaside offer
Cultural offer
Nature offer
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Major Business Events
Morocco Tourism Investment Forum
Sector: Tourism
Organisers: Bench Events and the Moroccan Agency for Tourism
Development
Focus: this event will be a meeting point of tourism industry stake-holders
and investors, focusing on the Moroccan tourism incentives, investment
opportunities, services and products.
Expected Participation: n/a
Next event: 15-16 April 2013, Casablanca (Hyatt Regency)
Information: http://www.morocco-forum.com/
The Africa hotel investment Forum (AHIF)
Sector: Tourism
Number of editions: at least 2 editions
Organiser: Bench Events
Focus: It aims to showcase high-growth destinations across the continent; the
2012 event was a resounding success with over 400 regional and global
delegates.
2012 participation (organisers data): 400 regional and global delegates
Next event: 24-25 September 2013, Nairobi (Intercontinental)
Information: http://www.africa-conference.com/
The Ecotourism and Sustainable Tourism Conference
Sector: Tourism
Organiser: The International Ecotourism Society (TIES)
Focus: a unique annual conference focused on the advancement of
sustainability goals for the tourism industry. Offering invaluable learning and
networking opportunities, the ESTC is a leading international meeting place
where innovative minds gather to discuss ideas and solutions that inspire
change.
2012 participation (organisers data):
Next event: 24-27 September 2013, Nairobi
Information: http://www.ecotourismconference.org
© EuroMed@Change 2013 18
This guide is a Doing business toolkit dedicated to clusters, SMEs, or entrepreneurs
interested in developing business partnerships in the tourism sector in Morocco. It provides
an overview of the main opportunities available for the private sector, as well as concrete
and useful data to those interested to go further.
It has been prepared by Fondation Sophia Antipolis under the EuroMed@Change Project, a
Preparatory Action initiated by the European Parliament and implemented by the European
Commission (DG Enterprise and Industry).
EuroMed@Change proposes new dynamics for SME and cluster internationalisation
between Europe and 4 targeted partner countries: Morocco, Tunisia, Egypt and Lebanon. It
is managed by four organisations from across Europe (ANIMA Investment network as
Project leader, the European Business Innovation Centre Network, INNO AG and the
Fondation Sophia Antipolis as partners) and it coordinates with more than 45 associated
regional business, finance and innovation networks.