Morocco, Israel Tourism Operators Consolidate Investment Relations

Rabat – Moroccan and Israeli tourism operators and investors reiterated interest in working together and creating investments in both countries during the first digital Morocco-Israel Tourism Investment Summit on Wednesday

In partnership with Morocco and Israel Ministries of Tourism and Hospitality Insights, and the Moroccan Society for Tourism Engineers (SMIT) organized the webinar to discuss investment opportunities in the countries’ tourism and hospitality sectors.

“As leading [tourist] destinations in the Mediterranean, both Israel and Morocco are quickly recovering from the crisis caused by the pandemic. Their buoyant tourism economy is served by a healthy hospitality real estate market with investment opportunities in all asset classes,” explained the organizers.

In an address to Israeli investors, Moroccan Minister of Tourism, Handicrafts, and Social and Solidarity Economy, Fatim-Zahra Ammor underlined the strategic position of Morocco as a gateway to Europe and hub for Africa, noting the country’s world-class infrastructure and its political and economic stability.

Recalling the normalization of Morocco-Israel relations in 2020, Ammor described the signing of the Abraham Accords as “a momentous event that laid a solid base for an eternal and fraternal relationship between our two countries.”

For his part, the Director-General of SMIT Imad Berrakad said that the Israeli tourism investors have expressed confidence and interest in the Moroccan tourism potential as they wish to benefit from the promising relations between the two countries.

The high-profile webinar attracted more than 200 senior representatives of Moroccan and Israeli tourism companies in addition to the participation of Natalia Bayona, Director of Innovation, education, and Investment of the UN World Tourism Organization.

As Israel and Morocco continue to cement bilateral relations in different fields, the tourism sector represents good investment opportunities for entrepreneurs and investors in both countries.

Since airspace reopened on February 7, Morocco’s National Office of Tourism (ONMT) has worked to revive the tourism sector by promoting the country in traditional markets such as France and Spain as well as expanding to new markets such as German-speaking territories.

On March 12, ONMT announced its collaboration with American influencer Happy Kelli and Israeli TV animator Yarden Harel “to boost the touristic image of Morocco.”

The partnership aligned with the office’s strategy for the digital marketing campaign, “We Are Open”, that targets foreign tourists.