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Moroccan Airports Receive 5.6m Passengers in Q1 2019

Chinese tourists jump as they pose for photographs at the esplanade of the Hassan II Mosque in Casablanca, Morocco, October 6, 2016. Reuters/ Youssef Boudlal
Chinese tourists jump as they pose for photographs at the esplanade of the Hassan II Mosque in Casablanca, Morocco, October 6, 2016. Reuters/ Youssef Boudlal
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Moroccan Airports Receive 5.6m Passengers in Q1 2019

Chinese tourists jump as they pose for photographs at the esplanade of the Hassan II Mosque in Casablanca, Morocco, October 6, 2016. Reuters/ Youssef Boudlal
Chinese tourists jump as they pose for photographs at the esplanade of the Hassan II Mosque in Casablanca, Morocco, October 6, 2016. Reuters/ Youssef Boudlal

The number of passengers traveling through Moroccan airports reached 5.6 million in the first quarter of 2019, up 9.66 percent year on year, compared to 5.1 million in the same period last year.

Morocco's biggest airport, Casablanca international airport, received 2.23 million passengers, nearly 40 percent of total air traffic between January and March.

Most of the Moroccan cities witnessed a rise in arrivals during this period with a huge turnout at the beginning of the year and also the end.

In this context, Marrakesh Airport received 27 percent of passengers during this period. A total of 1.52 million passengers arrived at the airport, recording a 21 percent increase. Rabat-Salé Airport witnessed a remarkable increase of up to 21 percent.

Southern countries stood out in attracting foreign tourists, especially Zagora Airport that saw a 125 percent increase and Dakhla that witnessed a rise in passengers of 31.2 percent, compared to the same period of last year.

Also, Essaouira Mogador Airport and Ouarzazate Airport for which passengers increased 34.3 percent and 28 percent, respectively.

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IMF Approves Third Review of Sri Lanka's $2.9 Bln Bailout

Peter Breuer, Senior Mission Chief for Sri Lanka at the IMF along with Katsiaryna Svirydzenka, Deputy Mission Chief for Sri Lanka at the IMF and Martha Tesfaye Woldemichael, Deputy Mission Chief for Sri Lanka at the IMF, attend a press conference organized by the International Monetary Fund (IMF) in Colombo, Sri Lanka, November 23, 2024. REUTERS/Thilina Kaluthotage
Peter Breuer, Senior Mission Chief for Sri Lanka at the IMF along with Katsiaryna Svirydzenka, Deputy Mission Chief for Sri Lanka at the IMF and Martha Tesfaye Woldemichael, Deputy Mission Chief for Sri Lanka at the IMF, attend a press conference organized by the International Monetary Fund (IMF) in Colombo, Sri Lanka, November 23, 2024. REUTERS/Thilina Kaluthotage
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IMF Approves Third Review of Sri Lanka's $2.9 Bln Bailout

Peter Breuer, Senior Mission Chief for Sri Lanka at the IMF along with Katsiaryna Svirydzenka, Deputy Mission Chief for Sri Lanka at the IMF and Martha Tesfaye Woldemichael, Deputy Mission Chief for Sri Lanka at the IMF, attend a press conference organized by the International Monetary Fund (IMF) in Colombo, Sri Lanka, November 23, 2024. REUTERS/Thilina Kaluthotage
Peter Breuer, Senior Mission Chief for Sri Lanka at the IMF along with Katsiaryna Svirydzenka, Deputy Mission Chief for Sri Lanka at the IMF and Martha Tesfaye Woldemichael, Deputy Mission Chief for Sri Lanka at the IMF, attend a press conference organized by the International Monetary Fund (IMF) in Colombo, Sri Lanka, November 23, 2024. REUTERS/Thilina Kaluthotage

The International Monetary Fund (IMF) approved the third review of Sri Lanka's $2.9 billion bailout on Saturday but warned that the economy remains vulnerable.
In a statement, the global lender said it would release about $333 million, bringing total funding to around $1.3 billion, to the crisis-hit South Asian nation. It said signs of an economic recovery were emerging, Reuters reported.
In a note of caution, it said "the critical next steps are to complete the commercial debt restructuring, finalize bilateral agreements with official creditors along the lines of the accord with the Official Creditor Committee and implement the terms of the other agreements. This will help restore Sri Lanka's debt sustainability."
Cash-strapped Sri Lanka plunged into its worst financial crisis in more than seven decades in 2022 with a severe dollar shortage sending inflation soaring to 70%, its currency to record lows and its economy contracting by 7.3% during the worst of the fallout and by 2.3% last year.
"Maintaining macroeconomic stability and restoring debt sustainability are key to securing Sri Lanka's prosperity and require persevering with responsible fiscal policy," the IMF said.
The IMF bailout secured in March last year helped stabilize economic conditions. The rupee has risen 11.3% in recent months and inflation disappeared, with prices falling 0.8% last month.
The island nation's economy is expected to grow 4.4% this year, the first increase in three years, according to the World Bank.
However, Sri Lanka still needs to complete a $12.5 billion debt restructuring with bondholders, which President Anura Kumara Dissanayake aims to finalize in December.
Sri Lanka will enter into individual agreements with bilateral creditors including Japan, China and India needed to complete a $10 billion debt restructuring, Dissanayake said.
He won the presidency in September, and his leftist coalition won a record 159 seats in the 225-member parliament in a general election last week.