Tourism revenues down 53.8% in 2020 in Morocco

Morocco’s tourism revenues fell by 53.8% in 2020 against a 7.8% increase the year before, i.e. a loss of 42.4 billion dirhams, according to the Department of Studies and Financial Forecasts (DEPF).

However, this trend includes a notable deceleration of the downward pace for the fourth quarter of 2020, standing at -46.1% after -80.1% a quarter earlier, thanks to the easing of measures to cross the national territory from the month of September 2020, the DEPF points out in its economic report for February 2021.

Arrivals at the Moroccan destination fell by 78.9% at the end of November 2020, against an increase of 5.3% for the first eleven months of 2019, while that of overnight stays decreased by 72,3%, after an increase of 5.2% in the same period the year before, notes the same source.

Globally, and according to the World Tourism Organization (UNWTO), the drop in the number of international arrivals reached 74% in 2020, the source said, noting that Asia-Pacific, the first region to be affected by the impact of the pandemic, and the one with the highest levels of travel restrictions in place currently, saw the largest drop in arrivals (-84%).

Arrivals in the Middle East and Africa fell by 75%, while decreasing by 70% in Europe. As for the Americas, they experienced a decline of 69% after a slight improvement in the last quarter.