Hello 2024.. Recording of the transit of about 538 thousand passengers through the ports of the Kingdom

Heba Press

Minister of Transport and Logistics, Mohamed Abdel Jalil, indicated yesterday Wednesday before the House of Advisors, that about 538,000 passengers were recorded crossing Moroccan ports until July 15 of this month as part of the “Marhaba 2024” operation, an increase of 4 percent compared to the same period of “Marhaba 2023”.

In his presentation on the “provisional results of the Welcome 2024 operation” to the Interior, Local Authorities and Infrastructure Committee, Abdel Jalil affirmed that the ministry will continue, with all its components, the global mobilization so that the stage of arrival of the members of the communities and their passage through the crossing points will be done in appropriate circumstances, by strengthening coordination, exchanging information and anticipating certain aspects related to the management of peak days between all stakeholders.

As in previous years, the minister added, Morocco should experience this year the influx of a significant number of members of the community abroad to visit their country, stressing that the ministry and the institutions under its supervision have worked to redouble their efforts to provide sufficient supply to cover the expected demand in terms of international maritime, air and road lines, in addition to supporting the transport companies concerned by the Marhaba operation and granting them the necessary transport licenses.

Regarding the components of the air transport offer, Mr. Abdeljalil indicated that the ministry mobilized a total of 29 ships, ensuring 535 weekly flights on all maritime lines connecting Moroccan ports to their Spanish, French and Italian counterparts, with a total weekly capacity estimated at 487,000 passengers and 130,000 cars.

Regarding air transport, he continued, 52 air transport companies have been approved to organize 2,060 regular flights on average per week connecting Morocco to 135 international airports and 52 countries, which represents a 15% increase compared to the summer period of 2023.

The minister indicated that Royal Air Maroc has launched a special program for the summer period, aimed at supporting its offer, improving its flight schedules and meeting the strong demand during the summer period, by making available more than 6.5 million seats, an increase of 300,000 seats compared to the year 2023, spread over… 90 destinations on four continents.

He noted that half of these seats will be allocated to connecting 11 Moroccan airports with 37 European destinations with an average of 671 flights per week, indicating that the company alone should ensure about a third of the scheduled flights, stressing that Europe is the main destination of the company’s flights, followed by Africa, then North America and the Middle East.

Regarding international road passenger transport via buses, Abdel Jalil stressed that a sufficient supply of transport services has been ensured, including 75 international transport companies, including 35 Moroccan companies that operate 69 international passenger transport lines, connecting France, Spain, Italy, Belgium and the Netherlands to Morocco. It provides approximately 288 weekly flights, equivalent to a capacity of 14,400 seats.

In terms of rail transport, the minister explained that the National Railways Office has worked to improve the offer by scheduling 48 daily trains to connect Tangier to different cities in the Kingdom, as well as 38 trains to connect Mohammed V airport at the hourly rate during the day.

He indicated that the Office has launched launch offers such as the “Yala Maroc” tourist card, which offers a 30 percent discount on all trips at the price of only 50 dirhams, and the “Yala Family” family fare, which offers discounts to families, in addition to a comprehensive mobilization that includes increasing the number of reception and orientation teams in stations and on board trains, improving sales channels to facilitate the purchase of tickets.

On the other hand, Abdel Jalil noted that the return to the country of Moroccans residing abroad constitutes an opportunity for many of them to accomplish their administrative objectives, stressing that the services affiliated to the ministry are working to speed up the processing of administrative documents for members of the community in order to reduce the time needed to obtain them.