São Paulo – The direct flight resuming between Casablanca and São Paulo by Royal Air Maroc on December 7 is expected to boost tourism flow between the two countries. The Moroccan ambassador in Brazil, Nabil Adghoghi, believes there will be a rise in both directions, with more Brazilians traveling to the Arab country and more Moroccans arriving in Brazil.
Morocco, which has a strong tourism activity, receives between 40,000 and 45,000 Brazilian visitors each year. “The goal is to reach 100,000 tourists per year,” Adghoghi said in an interview with ANBA. Moroccans also travel for tourism to Brazil, with a flow of about eight thousand to nine thousand people per year before the pandemic. “This resumption will certainly increase this number,” he says.
Royal Air Maroc’s direct flight to Brazil was suspended during the COVID-19 pandemic, along with the interruption of global air traffic. The route is returning with three connections per week between the Mohammed V International Airport in Casablanca and the São Paulo International Airport in Guarulhos. Air tickets are already being sold.
Adghoghi believes there will be demand for both direct tourism between the countries and for connections. Brazilians will be able to make connections in Morocco for trips to European cities or even combine the two destinations, spending a few days in Morocco and the others in Europe. The ambassador notes that Casablanca has become an aviation hub between West Africa, the Middle East, and Europe.
The diplomat recalls that Morocco opened a representation of the Moroccan National Tourism Office (ONMT) in São Paulo at the beginning of the year. “These two efforts will combine to promote tourism flow between the two countries,” he says. In addition, there is a high satisfaction rate among Brazilians who visit Morocco. “The more a tourist likes the destination, the more they return,” he says.
Adghoghi spoke to ANBA after a meeting at the Arab-Brazilian Chamber of Commerce (ABCC) with its Vice President of International Relations & Secretary-General Mohamad Mourad and Director of Institutional Relations Fernanda Baltazar, where they discussed actions to foster economic relations between Brazil and Morocco, including the holding of a business mission to the Arab country. The details are being finalized.
Next steps beyond tourism
The governments of Brazil and Morocco held a Political Consultative Mechanism Meeting in Brasília in May this year. Shortly thereafter, in June, Brazilian Foreign Minister Mauro Vieira visited Morocco and outlined a plan for partnership with Moroccan Minister of Foreign Affairs, African Cooperation, and Moroccans Living Abroad, Nasser Bourita.
Among the recommendations resulting from the meeting is collaboration on issues related to the South Atlantic, as both countries have large coastlines along this ocean—the term refers to the area of the Atlantic between South America and Africa. The subsequent joint statement also includes interest in food security. “Morocco is one of the largest suppliers of fertilizers for Brazilian agriculture and also imports commodities from Brazil on a large scale, including sugar, corn, and coffee,” said Adghoghi.
The holding of a business forum between the two countries, a topic discussed by Ambassador Adghoghi at the ABCC, was one of the recommendations from the meeting of the foreign ministers. According to the document released at the time, it will serve to strengthen trade relations, promote synergies between public and private actors, and reinforce the complementarity of the productive sectors of Brazil and Morocco.
Ambassador Adghoghi sees the current global economic moment as one of partnerships between sectors, such as industry, logistics, and services. He notes that Brazil and Morocco are, for example, vehicle producers. “There can be complementarity among automakers,” he says, also listing other sectors to be explored in these partnerships, such as aerospace and green hydrogen.
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Morocco opens tourism office in Brazil
Translated by Guilherme Miranda
