Morocco's airports set new records
Positive figures continue to come in for Morocco's economy, particularly in terms of tourism and airports.
In this line, Moroccan airports have set a new historical record with more than 24 million passengers registered until last September.
Morocco's airports registered a new record in 2024, with 24,274,324 passengers at the end of September, an increase of 19.66% compared to the same period last year, according to data published by the National Airports Office (ONDA).
This data is in line with the relevant tourism data for Morocco, a country considered as a preferred tourist destination for a significant majority of people seeking to travel to attractive places. On the other hand, the Moroccan kingdom also receives a significant number of business and commercial travellers due to the intense economic activity that has been taking place in the North African country in recent years.
The end of September left a milestone in tourism, with more than 13 million tourists in Morocco to date, according to the announcement of the Ministry of Tourism, Handicrafts and Social and Solidarity Economy of the Kingdom of Morocco.
This historical record shows an increase of 2 million tourists compared to the same period in 2023, reflecting the growing dynamism of Morocco as an international tourist destination, as indicated in an official statement from the Ministry of Tourism itself.
This favourable tourist wave is also influencing airport traffic in the North African country. Several major airports led the growth: Rabat-Salé recorded an astonishing 42.77% increase in passenger numbers, closely followed by Agadir with 36.5%.
These figures are partly attributed to a 32% increase in international traffic, with Morocco capturing much of this global traffic.
Morocco is a desirable tourist destination thanks to the policies implemented by the Moroccan state aimed at further developing an economic sector that is key to the Moroccan kingdom.
As for the promotion of Morocco's tourist attractiveness, the Moroccan kingdom has long been showcasing the ‘Morocco, Land of Light’ campaign, which was launched by the Moroccan National Tourist Office (ONMT) in April 2022 with a view to positioning the North African country as an attractive and desirable tourist destination.
The ONMT revamped the national tourism brand and in these two years the initiative has worked quite well.
The tourist centre of Marrakech recorded an increase in tourists of 33.88%, while Dakhla, Tetouan and Tangier recorded increases of 35.94%, 31.09% and 21.91% respectively. ONDA attributed the good figures to a combination of growing tourism, expanded flight options and growth in regional air connections.
Domestic traffic alone increased by 28.82% to more than 2.5 million passengers. International flights, which account for the majority of Morocco's air traffic, increased by 18.67% year-on-year, reaching 21,721,637 passengers.
The growth in international arrivals was mainly driven by European travellers: traffic from Europe increased by 19.86%, from Africa by 17.68% and from the Middle East by 11.99%, according to official data.
Morocco has multiplied air connections with various international destinations in recent years and this has been reflected in passenger numbers, with plans to double the air infrastructure by 2035, according to the Moroccan government's plan. This plan is also driven, unsurprisingly, by the organisation of the 2030 World Cup, which will require a significant absorption of visitors by the Moroccan kingdom, which is co-hosting the event with Spain and Portugal.
The Moroccan kingdom has made a firm commitment to a project to expand and modernise its airports, and this is also noticeable. The Minister of Transport and Logistics, Mohamed Abdeljalil, has already announced that the Kingdom of Morocco will work on the expansion and renovation of several airports in order to reach a capacity of 80 million passengers by 2035, compared to the current 40 million.
