Tourism

National School of
Business and
Management (ENCG-Fez)

OUTLINE

INTRODUCTION
2
PART I: THE EVOLUTION OF MOROCCAN
TOURISM....3

I.
II.

Tourisms evolution in
Morocco..4
Sustainable
Tourism.................................................................6

PART II: Why Morocco?

..10
I.

II.

Why
Morocco ?.............................................................................
.........11
Efforts
to
enhance
Moroccos
tourism
position12

CONCLUSION
14
BIBLIOGRAPHY
15

INTRODUCTION

Human being spends years and years working hard, studying,

spending long days and nights in order to achieve our goals and dreams.
When it comes to dreams, everyone dreams of a world tour. Traveling is
the greatest and shortest way to discover other countries, different
cultures and people. This is why tourism is a very important sector in each
country because it is a kind of mirror reflecting its image, traditions,
population and potential.
Morocco, this beautiful country where I was born and where I grew
up.This country that I have learned to love and protect no matter what
happens. My country is nowadays one of the best destinations when it
comes to tourism. Tourists come to visit Morocco from different places and
continents in the world. Its reputation is now one of the greatest all over
the globe.
Fez, Marrakech, Casablanca, Rabat, Dakhla, Agadir, Laayoune,
Tangier,Tetouan, Meknes, Ifrane, Vulubilis, Chefchaouen, Essaouira, Al
Hoceima... All these cities are Moroccos best attractions thanks to their
historical

monuments

(mosques,

places,memorials,

temples)

infrastructures and natural landscapes (sea, forests, mountains, desert ...).

The efforts of Moroccan ministry of tourism seduce more tourists every
year and a brief look at the statistics can approve this fact. Even though,
there is still some work to do concerning this sector, in order to contribute
to the countrys development and growth.
The following report will analyze in a first time, the evolution of
Moroccan tourism and the integration of a new concept: sustainable
tourism. As a second step, this report will discuss reasons behind the
expansion of tourism in our country and summarize the governmental
efforts to enhance this sectors abilities and performances.

PART I:

THE EVOLUTION OF MOROCCAN

TOURISM:
I. Tourisms Evolution in Morocco :
If we compare the old Morocco to the wonderful country we have the
chance to live in nowadays, we can easily notice the growth concerning all
the sectors. Education, industry, servicing, agriculture All these sectors
are getting better with time but the sector of tourism is definitely one of
the most considerable trumps in our country, because a very large part of
our economy is related to this field. The Moroccan economy has been
growing steadily for the last few years. It has been one of the most
politically stable countries and has been working hard to boost the tourism
industry, which has a high potential for growth. Morocco is called the land
of mystery and a place worth a visit.
During the period between 2000 and 2016, a huge evolution had
impacted the tourism sector in our country. Nowadays, several families
depend on tourisms revenues and their daily life is influenced by domestic
tourisms fluctuations. Under the guidance of King Mohammed VI and his
plan of Vision 2010, the Moroccan government is taking great efforts to
improve infrastructure that is needed to support about 10 million visitors
by 2010. The governments tourist development plan, Vision 2010,
achieved 9.3 million visitors in 2010, just below its target of 10 million.
Vision 2020 aims to double tourist arrivals to 20 million by 2020.
The 2010 vision had as a target to achieve the 25 th place worldwide
for Moroccan tourismsby the end of 2010.Now, vision 2020 for tourism in
Morocco aims to raise the destination to be in the top twenty of the
touristic destinations in the world and make it become a model of
sustainability in the Mediterranean area.
In the Moroccan economy: Tourism is the top of foreign exchange
earner, the second biggest contributor to GDP and second biggest creator

of jobs (460 000 employee). The following diagram shows the evolution
and importance of Moroccan tourisms revenues combined to the arrivals
of tourists during the period between 2004 and 2010 according to the

ministry of finance:
We can easily notice that the number of tourists choosing Morocco
as a destination for their holidays is growing every year. During six years,
the country gained 45 000 tourists, which is a considerable evolution
regarding the efforts that the government was going through to enhance
tourism in Morocco.
This fact is corroborated with another diagram showing that a great
evolution has been noticed while talking about the number of nights
stayed in each city.

II. Sustainable Tourism :

During the few last years, our vision of the world and the way we
should live has been impacted by several changes. We are more aware of
the importance of the environment protection, social improvements,
durable development This wave of consciousness is affecting more
fields every day and tourism is concerned by this change because we are
living the emergence of what we call sustainable tourism.
Some experts and researchers established definitions for this new
concept, but the most famous one is the following:
Sustainable

tourism

development

requires

theinformed

participation of all relevant stakeholders, as well as strong political

leadership to ensure wide participation and consensus building. Achieving
sustainable tourism is a continuous process and it requires constant
monitoring of impacts, introducing the necessary preventive and/or
corrective measures whenever necessary.Sustainable tourism should also
maintain a high level of tourist satisfaction and ensure a meaningful
experience to the tourists, raising their awareness about sustainability
issues and promoting sustainable tourism practices amongst them.1
1World TourismOrganization

The birth of this new vision of tourism brought other concepts to life.
It is necessary to make a distinction between all these new forms of
tourism:

Responsible Tourism
Responsible tourism is like sustainable tourism, however as the word
sustainability is often overused and not understood, responsible tourism
has been adopted as a term used by industry.
Responsible tourism is any form of tourism that can be consumed in
a more responsible way.
Responsible tourism is tourism which:

minimizes negative social, economic and environmental impacts;

generates greater economic benefits for local people and enhances

the well-being of host communities;

improves working conditions and access to the industry;

involves local people in decisions that affect their lives and life
chances;

makes positive contributions to the conservation of natural and

cultural heritage embracing diversity;

provides more enjoyable experiences for tourists through more

meaninful connections with local people, and a greater understanding of
local cultural, social and environmental issues;

provides access for physically challenged people;

is culturally sensitive, encourages respect between tourists and

hosts, and builds local pride and confidence;2

Ecotourism:
Ecotourism is a form of sustainable tourism all forms of tourism can
become more sustainable but not all forms of tourism can be ecotourism.
It could be defined as following:
Ecotourism is environmentally responsible travel and visitation to
relatively undisturbed natural areas, in order to enjoy, study and
2Cape Town Declaration

appreciate nature (and any accompanying cultural features both past

and present), that promotes conservation, has low visitor impact, and
provides for beneficially active socio-economic involvement of local
populations3

Geotourism
Geotourism is very similar to sustainable tourism and is a definition
brought about by National Geographic Traveller The concept is the same
but they focus on the sense of place in an area rather than the
industrys efforts.

Voluntourism :
Voluntourism is a form of travel where one volunteers on projects
which give back to the community. The best illustration that we can
provide here is AIESEC case. AIESEC is a non-governmental not-for-profit
organisation in consultative status with the United Nations Economicand
Social Council (ECOSOC), and is recognized by UNESCO. This organisation
provide programs to young student to volunteer abroad, help poor
countries to enhance their education, cultural level, health consciousness,
envirommental habits.
Volunteers travel and learn to see the world not as a tourist, but as a
local. Their volunteering opportunities around the world have inspired
countless thousands of AIESECers to pursue pro-social causes in their
future lives and careers.
We can say that sustainable tourism is a type of tourism that
respects both the local population and the traveller. In Morocco, the
Moroccan

Cleaner

ProductionCentreis

in

chargetoprovidedetailsconcerningthispartofourlocaltourism,
itstargetsanditsevolution. For the period 2013-2015, Morocco was elected
chairman of the steering committee of the Global Partnership for
Sustainable Tourism. Thats why, relying on the Global Code of Ethics of Tourism
3The official definition adopted by the IUCN,Ceballos-Lascurain

adopted by the World Tourism Organization (UNWTO) a Moroccan Charter for

Responsible Tourism has been established. This charter gathers all commitments of
actors involved in tourism in Morocco including the details below:

Consider tourism as a factor of sustainable development and environmentally sound;

Best environmental practices for the hotel industry;

These environmental practices are covering several areas such as:

Noise, air quality and landscape integration;

Energyefficiency and economy ;

Logistics : efficient handling and management;

Wastes : valorisation and recycling ;

Water : management and rationalisation ;

Purchasingpolicy : ecological aspects.

To promotea specificallyMoroccanmodel of sustainabletourism, 3
challenges must be gained:
1. Optimization of the natural/environmental resources : because
they are our biggest treasure;
2. Respect the authenticity and the identity of the local
populations: it is difficult to preserve its own identity intact
because of globalization, but this point is crucial since Morocco
will never be this beautiful if it was different and fake;
3. Making a fair distribution of the revenues of tourism in the
whole country: Some areas have a great potential (natural
ressources, notoriety, climate, location) but others dont.
And it is not fair to not change this disparity while we can
make fair distribution.

All these actions aiming to improve different aspects of Moroccan tourism are a
considerable push for this country because the image of the whole nation is developed
thanks to this new concept.

PART II:

Why Morocco?
I.

Reasons to choose Morocco as a

destination :

Reasons why millions of tourists will keep on choosing Moroccan as a

trip destination every year are innumerable and countless. There is a lot to
see in Morocco and thanks to the efforts of the Moroccan national office of
tourism, people from all the world can see the best side of our country, the
opportunities it can provide and all the good discoveries to make while
traveling around Moroccan areas.
We can choose Morocco because it is popular for its perfect natural
landscapes such as its beaches rich in natural beauty. Tourists can visit
them the whole year and enjoy the Mediterranean fresh and pleasant
climate. Al Hoceima, Tetouan, Tangier, Dakhla, Nador, Agadir, a these
cities have famous beaches that were and still the major tourist attractions
during many years.
In addition to the sea, Morocco is now increasing what we call
Mountains Tourism in some areas to help the population living there.
The Atlas and Riff mountains pull the adventure lovers to it from the entire
world. They climb the highest and most delicate mount to discover
another side of the Moroccan panoramas and get some wild sensations
during the adventure. These mountains provide exciting trekking as well
as mountain biking opportunities. There are great trails for hiking and you
can go hours on end simply taking in the beautiful flora and fauna in the
valleys. The diversity and the existence of the exotic variety of flora and
fauna make it a nature lovers paradise.
Beside famous mountains such as Akchour (near to Chefchaouen),
Toubkal, Bouyeblane Morocco has a complete different charming face:
desert! Sahara is our biggest pride and tourists cannot come to Morocco
without visiting the southern regions known for their beauty and warm

climate. From Merzouga to Tinghir, passing by Ouarzazat, Sidi Ifni, Dakhla,

Laayoune Desert tourism is also being developed

and all these arid

areas charm European and American tourists with their kasbah and the
legendary generosity and kindness of their population. A visit to Morocco
cannot be complete without a camel ride to the deserts. Tourists can have
great memories of the deserts as they lie on the sands watching the
twinkling stars above. As they visit the cities and towns of Morocco they
are amazed at the culture and beauty of the old Medina, the castles,
gardens and the local markets are great to visit as well.
Moroccos climate is also one of the greatest in the world which
appeals a lot of tourists especially those coming from cold areas to enjoy
the sun shines which bright nearly 300 days of the years and makes for a
good setting for some great vacations visiting deserts, beaches and
snowcapped mountains.Morocco is situated in the northeastern part of
Africa has a moderate, subtropical climate with cool sea breezes from the
Atlantic Ocean as well as the Mediterranean Sea. It is mostly sunny the
entire year which is a pleasure for tourists who are ready to live this great
temperatures transformation. The summers are pleasantly warm and the
time around April and May can be the best time to visit the south part of
the country while the coastal region can be visited during July and August.
Morocco has a very rich history that began with the Berbers and has
been ruled by many dynasties. Spanish and Portuguese influences have
contributed to create a rich cultural heritage that every Moroccan is proud
of. The kingdom of Morocco that is at the crossroad of Europe and Africa is
an awe-inspiring country with its beautiful culture and interesting history.
The country has a very strong sense of culture. Various rulers that ruled
the country influenced the country's cultural diversity. This diversity
seduces a lot of tourists who are curious to discover the history of this
country while visiting historical monuments, old medina and famous
places and castles (Lahdim, JamaaLefna)

Why Morocco? Because of so many reasons such as its great culinary

art, its friendly and lovely population, its curious history, its warm climate,
its incredible landscape but also its charming handicraft.

II.

Efforts to enhance Moroccos tourism

position:

As we had precise it before, Morocco is making huge efforts to

improve

and

increase

its

position

regarding

the

tourism

sector.

Government, as well as public and private institutions, is leading an

incredible change in order to develop the amazing potential the country is
hiding.
We can summarize these efforts which are being taken to market
Morocco as a cheap and exotic location as following:

Domestic tourism is being popularized;

Providing an internationally competitive range of sea side

resorts for Morocco (The Azur 2020 program);

Developing a range of international-class cultural and leisure
events

to

enhance

the

attractiveness

of

our

tourist

destinations based on a full program of events;

Offering a product tailored to the habits and manner of

travelling of Moroccans (Biladi Program);

Enhancing the range of cultural experiences on offer by
making the most of Moroccos tangible and intangible
heritage: Developing specific accommodation, reconversion of
historical

monuments,

building

important

museums,

enhancing and adding value to traditional festivals (Patrimony

and Heritage Program)

Leisure cities, thematic parks and resorts
The government is planning and executing good projects that
are aimed at improving the rail and road links such as

highways between the major cities and tourist destinations;

The open skies policy has also allowed more airlines to come
in into the country;

The airports are being upgraded or new ones build to match

the international standard and support larger number of air

traffic;
Safety measures are taken into consideration in order to

guarantee tourists security while they are staying in Morocco.

At the national level: creation of the high commission of
tourism (public and private organizations) : guide, monitor,

strategy coordination
At the local level: Tourism Development agencies in each
tourism territory to raise its competitiveness and attractivity
and provide guidance to local providers and investors.

CONCLUSION:
Tourism

is

powerfuldriverofeconomic

growth

and

animportanttoolforregionalimprovementanddevelopment,makingthemostof
thevarious

territories,

population

groups,andother

assetsinasustainableway. It has also multiplier effects on all other sectors

of the economy, an important and plays a significant part in the prosperity
of the country as a hole
The Moroccan tourism is growing bigger day by day and it is now a
national priority. The evolution of this sector occurred because this country
has

richheritageofcivilization,awelcomingandtolerantpeople,andaresponsiblena
tioncommittedtothevaluesandprinciplesofsustainabledevelopment.
We can achieve a total development by:

Enhancing the range of cultural products;

Continuing to market the seaside resorts;
Creating a range of Nature tourism products;
Setting up themed corridors
Setting up a potent range of events and guides

The development of the national tourism doesnt only rely on

international tourists but also on local ones. In fact, Moroccan citizens
arent aware of the beauty that hides their country waiting for them to
explore and discover it. The efforts leaded by the government are
beneficial for Moroccan population as well.
Discovering, loving and promoting our countrys tourism is every
citizens role nowadays.

BIBLIOGRAPHY/WEBOGRAPHY:

www.tourism.gov.ma
http://www.maroc.ma/en/content/tourism
www.sustainabletourism.net
Nada ROUDIES, Director for Regulation, Development
and Quality, department of Tourism, Morocco.
HananHanzaz, Director, Morocco NCPC (3rd Global
Network Conference on RECP, Montreux, 4 september
2013)