Morocco is now the top tourist destination in North Africa, surpassing Egypt in number of tourists during the first half of 2024, Sky News Arabia reported.
According to data released by tourism ministries in North African countries, Morocco received the most tourist arrivals during the first six months of 2024, with 7.4 million visitors, an increase of 14% over the same period the previous year.
Egypt ranked second, welcoming 7.069 million tourists in the first half of 2024, followed by Tunisia in third place with 4 million tourists.
Earlier in July, Morocco’s Minister of Tourism, Handicrafts, and Social and Solidarity Economy Fatim-Zahra Ammor noted a 1.6% increase in Morocco’s tourism revenues during the first five months of 2024, totaling $4.13 billion.
Morocco is striving to attract 17.5 million tourists next year and 26 million annually by 2030, to coincide with co-hosting the FIFA World Cup finals with Spain and Portugal.
Tourism contributes 7% to Morocco’s GDP and serves as a major source of foreign currency. The country is focusing on encouraging investment in tourism development, increasing accommodation capacity, and creating unique tourist experiences through public-private partnerships.
Rabat also seeks to generate 120 billion MAD in revenue and create 200,000 direct and indirect job opportunities from the tourism sector.