Operation “Crossing the Strait” First turning point before the July rush

Operation “Crossing the Strait” begins to gain mo­mentum. After a slow start on June 5, as usual during this ope­ration, the flow of travelers is star­ting to accelerate. At the time of this issue of the paper going to press, the number of travelers having arrived at the port of Tangier Med reached 20,000 passengers, while the number of entries stood at just over 12,000, according to sources close to the port authorities. In total, some 9,000 vehi­cles passed through the quays of the port, most of them heading to Mo­rocco.

The number may seem rather small, but it is a source of comfort for shipping companies, businesses, but also for tourist operators, among the main economic players boosted by the presence of MRAs (Moroc­cans residing abroad). According to forecasts, it is expected that the total number of Moroccans in the diaspora traveling as part of Operation “Cros­sing the Strait” exceeded 2 million travelers during this edition. The vo­lume of flows will experience, in all likelihood, a marked increase from the first days of July, in anticipation of Eid Al-Adha scheduled to take place around the 10th of this mon­th. The volume stabilizes normally during the rest of July to accelerate again during the last weekend of the month when there is a telescope between the return of the July holi­day goers to Europe and the arrival in Morocco of the August holiday goers.

During the following month, the pace of returns to Europe accelerated to end in a veritable avalanche during the last days of August, when most Moroccans in the diaspora had to re­turn to their jobs in their countries. of reception. It is because this presence comes after a little over two years of cessation of Operation Crossing the Strait, a break imposed by the Covid pandemic but also by the frost which characterized relations between Mo­rocco and Spain, the two countries most involved in this operation. One should remember the obligation, this year, of the need to have a confir­med boat ticket before accessing the ports, whether from Europe or from Morocco. The goal is to avoid unne­cessary gatherings, a source of conta­mination, and to avoid the blockages that have marred past editions.

Ali ABJIOU