Five program contracts signed to re-launch tourism in Morocco

Five program contracts relating to the revival of the catering sector, the press, the cultural and creative industries, private gyms and day care centers, were signed, on Wednesday in Rabat, on the sidelines of the 11th meeting of the Economic Monitoring Committee (CVE).

These program contracts include support measures of a social and economic nature aimed at preserving employment and supporting entrepreneurial activity in these sectors.

In addition, a program contract has been signed to support restaurant owners, affiliated with the National Social Security Fund (CNSS), whom are affected by the decisions taken to contain the spread of the pandemic. Its entry into force takes effect from January 1, 2021.

In a statement to the press at the end of the Committee's meeting, the president of employers' body (CGEM) Chakib Alj welcomed the consideration by the CVE of all the requests made by the CGEM, since September, relating to sectors which had not yet benefited from support measures.

The program contracts which concern restaurant owners, the press, the cultural and creative industries, private gyms and day care centers, aim to preserve jobs and cash flow of companies operating in these sectors which continue to suffer from the effects of the Covid-19 crisis, he said.

For his part, the Minister of Culture, Youth and Sports Othman El Ferdaous said that the sectors concerned by these program contracts are still suffering since the outbreak of the pandemic, in particular the cultural and creative industries, since theaters and cinemas are still closed.

These program contracts aim to put in place a certain number of resilience measures that will not only relieve the cash flow of companies, but also support employees who will benefit from a temporary sick leave allowance, he said.

On the Committee's meeting, the Minister said that it was also an occasion to announce a number of projects included within the framework of the action plan of the Ministry of Culture, Youth and Sports for the year 2021, in particular those related to the digitization component and the resulting reforms.