Capital
of Morocco: Rabat
Surface area of Morocco: 720,000 km2
Moroccan Population: 32,805,000 inhabitants
Languages Spoken in Morocco: Arabic
Berber, French, Spanish
GDP/per capita (dollars): 4.200 US $
Religion: Islam (98.7 % Muslims)
The
Kingdom of Morocco is at the farthest
west point of the Arab world and North Africa
just under the Strait of Gibraltar. Morocco
is strategically located with both Atlantic
and Mediterranean coastlines, and a rugged mountainous
interior.
Morocco was a French protectorate from 1912
to 1956, when Sultan Mohammed became king. He
was succeeded in 1961 by his son, Hassan II
and then in 1999 he was succeeded by his son
King Mohammed VI.
Morocco's capital city is Rabat. Other major
cities in Morocco are Marrakesh and Fes as well
as the ports of Casablanca and Tangier.
Increasing
Interest in Morocco
According to Times online (a UK based online
newspaper), Morocco is
the fastest growing destination
for holidaymakers who buy flights through lastminute.com.
Airlines have been engaged in an aggressive
fares war because of the record number
of flights, with London-Marrakesh fares
dropping as little as £27 (€38
or $48) return including taxes and
charges.
Magreb Arabe Presse has reported that during
summer 2006 flight bookings to Marrakesh leapt
295% year-on-year, maintained by the
increased number of flights operating between
UK and Morocco.
The other popular Moroccan destination is Tangier,
which is the fifth fastest growing destination
with bookings of up to 132%
year-on-year.
There seems to be a growing trend for consumers to buy property direct from developers world wide. The concept is that by purchasing direct from developers the buyer will be able to get a great discount. In some cases it could be true that buying direct from developers a buyer can purchase a discount, especially if he is buying multiple units as an investment. Buying direct from developers is definitely not a bad option to explore also in Morocco.
Although a word of caution here is that if you already have an estate agent that you have confidence in then buying direct from developers could be beneficial if you get the right property developer, but if a buyer goes direct from developers without knowing the developers then it might not be a good idea. So once again use common sense in Morocco or world wide when you are purchasing direct from developers make sure that you get references from other buyers or from a reputable agency that you know and trust. These are just some basic ideas that I want to share with our clients, our company might not profit as much, but in the long run we want to establish trust with our clients even if they go direct from developers to make their purchases.
Written by Thomas Spyker July 13, 2007
PEOPLE
The people of Morocco have a rich diversity
and unique cultural blended from Arab, Berber,
European and African influences.
Moroccans are some of the
most generous hospitable people in the world.
It's not uncommon to get invited to dinner
upon meeting and chatting with a Moroccan
for only ten minutes and if you are honored
with such an opportunity you will be treated
to an experience you will never forget.
Typical Moroccan meals
for guests are two to three courses that extend
over several hours of lively conversation.
Mint Tea is an integral part of Moroccan hospitality
and daily life that you are almost sure to
experience.
The official languagein
Morocco is Arabic and various Berber dialects
are spoken.
French is widely spoken
in business, government and academic circles
and Spanish is also spoken in the north.
English
is also widely used in hotels, restaurants
and cafes where there are a larger number
of tourists.
ECONOMY Morocco has a free market economy that has
grown by an average of 4% a year since 1983. The government
has adopted a proactive privatization creating opportunities
in the telecommunication, utilities and automotive sectors.
There is a free trade zone at the port and airport of
Tangier and merchandise entering these zones is exempt
from customs, fiscal and exchange control
Morocco’s exports include fish, citrus fruits,
energy, finished products, phosphates phosphoric acid
and raw materials. Other key areas of the economy are
tourism, agriculture, fishing and forestry
LOCAL CURRENCY The unit of currency in Morocco is the Dirham
(DH), which is divided into 100 centimes. Business
visitors are advised to consult their banks for the
current rate of exchange. No import of dirhams is
allowed. Overseas visitors need to change their currency
into dirhams locally.
The Moroccan Central Bank (Bank
Al Maghrib) fixes the value of the Dirham using a
basket of currencies including the Euro, Dollar and
Yen. The Dirham is not yet fully convertible.
