Noamane El Belghiti: “En Dajla hay muchas oportunidades para las empresas españolas”
The historic agreement between the United States and Morocco for the recognition of Western Sahara as Moroccan territory is producing a wave of optimism among the Saharawi population, who see in this context a great opportunity for the development of the region. One of the cities that stands to benefit most from this situation is Dakhla, formerly Villa Cisneros, which aspires to be the bridge between sub-Saharan Africa and the rest of the world.
Noamane El Belghiti is a Moroccan businessman from Tangier, a property developer married to a Spanish citizen from La Mancha, who promotes social housing developments that encourage the creation and strengthening of the middle class in Morocco. In addition, El Belghiti is Secretary General of Nord-Sud Action, the Moroccan Association for Communication, Socio-economic Development and Investment Promotion.
Right now, he is in Dakhla to see the business possibilities of this pearl of the Atlantic.
What can an entrepreneur find in Dakhla?
As you know, Dakhla is a province located in the south of Morocco, on the border with Mauritania, and as far as investments are concerned, it has incredible possibilities. The five pillars on which Dakhla is based are tourism, renewable energies, fishing, logistics and agriculture. It is around these figures that Dakhla's potential development for the coming years lies. In my case, as a real estate developer, I am interested in the hotel sector and real estate development around the construction of new housing in the city.
How do you find the security situation in the city?
There is total security in Dakhla. It is just another province in Morocco and I don't notice any difference in terms of security compared to Tangier, Casablanca or Rabat. What is going to happen here is that there will be very important investments such as the Atlantic Ocean port of Dakhla, and this means that important investments will go hand in hand and we are here precisely to study the new business possibilities and to contribute our grain of sand in the development of this area of Morocco.
You are Moroccan, but at the same time half Spanish because of your family ties. What would you say to a businessman about the possibilities that exist in this region?
I would invite both Spanish businessmen and employers to discover the enormous possibilities that the city has to offer, now is the time for Dakhla. For a potential investor, I would say that in three or four years it will be too late. I reiterate that the axes of Dakhla are tourism, renewable energies, fishing, logistics and agriculture.
In terms of tourism, Spain is a pioneering country in the sector and I think it will be a very good opportunity for Spanish hotels, which will study this area well, with its capacities and opportunities. Where we are now, the hotel offer is growing every day. Then we have logistics, with the international port of Dakhla, which would be a link between Sub-Saharan Africa and Europe, I think there will also be many opportunities for Spanish companies. Then there is the issue of fishing, an area in which Spain is already quite well positioned. Practically all of the octopus production, which is the number one product here, goes almost entirely to Spain. There are many opportunities and I believe that business trips should be organised to exchange ideas and to be able to see all this live.
In addition, there is a question, to conclude, and that is that the coronavirus in Dakhla has a low incidence
It is true, for example, the other day I flew here from Casablanca, that is, I was not coming from outside Morocco, and at the airport I had the free PCR test offered by the government. Dakhla is a very safe city, with the good term that implies, so it is safe for tourism.