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Rocking the Kasbah
Tipped to be the biggest emerging international market Morocco has much to aspire to. Elspeth Hoare examines the country's current plans for growth, and what's to come.
With a rich history and tradition infused with Arab, African and European influences, Morocco has enjoyed impressive growth over the past few years, characterized by a move away from agriculture, the swift emergence of industry and a boom in foreign direct investment.
What's more, from an international investor perspective Morocco has it all; pristine coastlines along its Atlantic and Mediterranean coasts, breathtaking mountain ranges, year-round sunshine, hospitable locals, a handful of richly historic cultural hubs all under the direction of an ambitious leader, King Mohamed VI, (dubbed "The Cool King" by Time Magazine) who has a plan to take his country firmly into the 21st century.
Morocco has been bobbing on the international property market scene for the last few years but two significant strategies; Vision 2010 and the ambitious Plan Azur under the instruction of King Mohamed have confirmed it as a major market for investors, second-home seekers and retirees alike.
Vision 2010 is Morocco's national tourism strategy which aims to attract 10 million visitors per year to the North African Kingdom in two years time and create 600,000 jobs in the tourism sector. In order to achieve this, the Plan Azur was announced which will see the creation of six state-of-the-art coastal resorts (five on the Atlantic coast and one on the Mediterranean coast).
Obviously, such vast development means accompanying infrastructure and the government have embarked upon a network of new roads, airport upgrades and high-speed train links which will reduce the journey time from Marrakech to Casablanca (the top two tourist destinations) from 5hrs 45mins to 2hrs 10mins.
On top of this, Tangiers is set to become the Mediterranean's largest port, holding huge commercial opportunities especially with a planned underground tunnel fast-link to mainland Spain.
Hamptons International and Emaar have identified Tangiers as a major growth area and recently unveiled Tinja, a resort on the Atlantic, twenty minutes drive from Tangiers and an hour from Spain.
Tinja will be made up of six distinctive communities with a hill-top community as the centre-piece.
Typically, the resort features a wealth of recreational and leisure facilities as well as a beach and spa hotel. With this development, Emaar aims to capitalize on the rental market; a sound strategy with a current lack of quality housing available and also no tax on rental income for purchasers for five years.
Youssef Benamour, Head of Hamptons Morocco said: "Morocco offers a very different investment from countries such as Spain. For example, while Spain remains primarily a beach destination, Morocco is very much a cultural destination targeting high-end clientele interested in a home away from home at less than three hours from Europe. We are also seeing a high level of interest from Dubai and Abu Dhabi".
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