Morocco’s Tough COVID Restrictions Hammer Tourism Sector

An aerial view of Marrakech, Morocco November 10, 2021. REUTERS/Ilan Rosenberg/File Photo
An aerial view of Marrakech, Morocco November 10, 2021. REUTERS/Ilan Rosenberg/File Photo
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Morocco’s Tough COVID Restrictions Hammer Tourism Sector

An aerial view of Marrakech, Morocco November 10, 2021. REUTERS/Ilan Rosenberg/File Photo
An aerial view of Marrakech, Morocco November 10, 2021. REUTERS/Ilan Rosenberg/File Photo

Businesses working in Morocco's key tourism sector say the country's tough COVID-19 restrictions, including a full flight ban, are undermining its competitiveness compared to rival destinations.

Morocco shut its borders in late November and will only reopen them at the end of January. It has also banned new year celebrations and is enforcing its vaccine pass requirements more strictly in response to the Omicron variant of the coronavirus.

"These restrictions are unjustified and they have made Morocco lose tourists to Mediterranean competitors such as Egypt and Turkey," said Lahcen Zelmat, head of Morocco's hotel federation, Reuters reported.

Tourism generated $8 billion, or 7% of Morocco's economy, in 2019, but the Central Bank expects it to have made only $3.6 billion this year.

Hotels in Marrakech, the main tourist hub, have only 14% occupancy at what is normally peak season, Zelmat said.

"We fear that by the time borders reopen we will find it hard to sell Morocco due to the sudden border closures," said Emmanuelle Barat, a tour operator.

"I have received no customers for the last 10 days," said Taher Onsi, a restaurant owner in Marrakech, adding that domestic tourism could not offset the fall in foreign visitors.

The government has approved a 2,000 dirham ($216) payment to tourism workers registered with social security who have been hit by the crisis.

"This aid does not cover businesses and workers who earn their living indirectly from tourism," Onsi said.

Said Afif, a member of the scientific committee that advises the government on coronavirus, said the curbs would protect lives and the economy by keeping the pandemic under control.

Recorded daily coronavirus cases have gone from around 100 earlier this month to 1,960 last Thursday.

Morocco is Africa's most vaccinated country, having now administered two shots to 23 million people, in a total population of 36 million. Nearly three million have also had booster shots.



Egypt Govt Pledges Wage Hikes, Relief for Citizens

 A woman prepares traditional Egyptian butter cookies known as "Kahk", to celebrate Eid al-Fitr, which marks the end of the holy month of Ramadan in Cairo, Egypt, March 23, 2025. (Reuters)
A woman prepares traditional Egyptian butter cookies known as "Kahk", to celebrate Eid al-Fitr, which marks the end of the holy month of Ramadan in Cairo, Egypt, March 23, 2025. (Reuters)
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Egypt Govt Pledges Wage Hikes, Relief for Citizens

 A woman prepares traditional Egyptian butter cookies known as "Kahk", to celebrate Eid al-Fitr, which marks the end of the holy month of Ramadan in Cairo, Egypt, March 23, 2025. (Reuters)
A woman prepares traditional Egyptian butter cookies known as "Kahk", to celebrate Eid al-Fitr, which marks the end of the holy month of Ramadan in Cairo, Egypt, March 23, 2025. (Reuters)

The Egyptian government has pledged to improve wages and ease the financial burden on citizens by raising the minimum wage to 7,000 Egyptian pounds (1 USD = 50.45 EGP in banks) starting from the new fiscal year in July 2025.

In its proposed budget for the 2025-2026 fiscal year, the government allocated an 18.1% increase in wage provisions, totaling 671 billion pounds to fund the new salary increases.

This includes a 10% increase in the periodic allowance for civil service law employees and a 15% increase for non-civil service employees, with a minimum increase of 150 pounds per month, according to Finance Minister Ahmed Kouchouk's statement on Monday.

The government measures also include raising the “cost of living allowance” from 600 to 1,000 pounds and increasing the additional incentive by 300 pounds across all job grades.

This will result in a minimum monthly salary increase of 1,100 pounds for the lowest job grade, boosting overall wages.

While welcoming the increase in the minimum wage, Samira Al-Jazzar, a member of the parliamentary plan and budget committee, called on the government to take further steps to ensure citizens benefit from the wage hikes.

She stressed the need to regulate markets and implement strict measures against price manipulators.

Al-Jazzar expressed concerns about potential price hikes, which could lead to a rise in inflation again.

She told Asharq Al-Awsat that the government should have pursued multiple strategies to address this issue.

The lawmaker also emphasized the importance of expanding production, which she believes would gradually reduce prices.

Economic expert Karim Al-Omda told Asharq Al-Awsat that the new wage increases are a preemptive move by the government to mitigate public anger over expected rises in fuel and service prices.

The government plans to raise fuel prices three times by the end of this year as part of a fuel subsidy reduction strategy under the economic reform program agreed with the International Monetary Fund, which secured a $12 billion loan, according to statements from Prime Minister Mostafa Madbouly.

Al-Omda urged the government to accelerate improvements in the education and healthcare sectors to genuinely enhance citizens' lives.

He highlighted the urgency of speeding up the implementation of the "comprehensive health insurance" system and making substantial reforms to the education system.

The Ministry of Finance has pledged to allocate the necessary funds to hire over 75,000 teachers, 30,000 doctors, and 10,000 other personnel in various government sectors in the upcoming fiscal year.