Moroccan hopes in the coastal zone as a yacht destination
After all, Morocco, on the contrary of the sub-Saharan West African countries suffering from coastal erosion, is blessed with a secure coastline.
One of the greatest pleasures of traveling and exploration is the coastal life, it’s no wonder why the latter is a multibillion-dollar business
The sea gets people addicted, and no one can tell you better than someone who has lived by the sea and experiences the ups and downs of coastal life. However, what is often disappointing is seeing great potential wasted and projects dropped ahead of maybe other economic priorities. One of the most underrated traveling destinations is actually North Africa, specifically Morocco. This country has a whole host of natural raw advantages that are just being discovered and used. It’s safe to say that it’s definitely a great place to invest your money in because the country is going into a direction of prosperity. Nevertheless, Morocco is a country that has great potential in the coastal life, but this great potential is rarely ever used. If harnessed and developed properly, Morocco could become one of the largest Superyacht destinations in the world, especially for the winter, in a parallel bloom of ocean harnessing and other forms of green energy along the coast.
Morocco as a country of great potential
The country has so many natural elements to it that are extremely advantageous; the climate of Morocco is perhaps one of the most diverse. The Atlas and Rif mountains are known for their extremely cold weather, and with the Moroccan Sahara in the south, Morocco is in the hold of two very diverse weather conditions. In addition to that, Morocco looks out to two sides on the ocean. The Moroccan costal life is majorly known for the Atlantic Ocean known for its roughness, in addition to the Mediterranean Sea. With both of these major spots for the sea life, Morocco is a huge importer of fish to Europe, as matter of fact; Morocco sells the majority of its fish to European countries such as Spain and France.
Morocco is recently developing in many areas and focusing on the international attention that could be very beneficial to the country. However, one of the areas where the country is lagging is the decision making when it comes to coastal life. There is not much attention around developing the seascape on both sides. This is quite saddening because Morocco has a great potential to become a winter yacht destination which could, in turn, benefit the country’s economy to invest in more coastal development.
The power of the developed coastal life
If Government, in a strategy with Investment funds agrees on investing in the coastal regions, it could solve many problems in turn. It could create conditions for regional demand for new job opportunities in both shore and broader region commerce, which can lead to increased attention on the local society and incoming tourism that Morocco is striving for. On the flip side, it could benefit the luxury side of Morocco making a hotspot for Superyacht marinas.
In addition to that, the areas around the Superyacht marinas could benefit in great aesthetical architecture, accommodating coffee shops, restaurants, hairdresser shops, book shops, marine shops, Sea corridors offer berths for boats or super yachts most of the times up to 90m. All of this could be created just for a moderate Superyacht marina.
The capital Rabat which holds Marina Bouregrag gave a nice example of coastal living.
But there are more areas facing Atlantic ocean which could be the idyllic spots for investors to build large marinas hosting superyacht sizes and for yachtsmen, to enjoy yacht clubs, yacht regattas, and enrich diving, sailing and water sports in the area. New yachting destination is always set wherever there are marinas and natural beauty like Morocco is blessed with. Yachting destinations always benefit both sides of the equation. Moreover, the yachting destinations through the marinas make the idyllic place for the family, children playground, all under supervision from a specialist in the Marina spots.
This could completely change the cities near the coast, Morocco should, by all means, invest in a project that would enhance the already existing infrastructure and start advertising the projects they work on just like Dubai did. The coastal life culture is definitely an addictive side of life, and it would very interesting to see North Africa joining the sea life. I will not open the subject of Tunisia’ efforts as this will be another chapter.
On another note, Morocco is always seeking to improve the sustainability of the country
It’s true that their efforts are to be appreciated, but there are many areas that need improvement and will, in turn, help the sustainability for future and future existing generations in Morocco. One of these areas is the coastal region. There is nothing better for the sustainability of a country than the luxury form of tourism, many people are seeking to enjoy their trips, and most of those people are looking out for marinas and coastal spots. If the Government does put its efforts into improving the infrastructure of the coast such as waste management, water improvement, green energy innovation as well as looking for options to deal with the swell, then we are looking at a bright future ahead of Morocco that will help the young generation find jobs, and attract tourists.
Morocco does have the social capacity for massive amounts of tourism, this is especially the case for the top spots of marinas and ports such as Tangiers, Casablanca, Rabat, and Agadir. These places are known for their powerful tourism. The problem arises when resources are not taken care of such as tourist spots and other important elements.
Morocco already has a good enough infrastructure to support a moderate modest influx of yacht traffic. The country has continuously been showing how good of a host country it is, the respect between people of the country and foreigners is beyond what anyone expects of a country that is perceived in the African country strata. The country also seeks to develop many long-lasting projects with ambitious countries and organizations such as China, Japan, South Korea, and many parts of Europe.
When it comes to the Sealife of Morocco, it is undoubtedly extremely rich in the fish reserves, as a matter of fact, Morocco has the world’s biggest phosphate reserves in the world because of the sea traction that happened many thousands of years ago. Morocco is also a great fishing spot and it is the world’s leader in sardine exports. Savvy investors continue to make their return to Morocco since they see great potential for Morocco to grow and prosper in the next few decades.
Dubai’s artificial islands as an example for Morocco
The government of Morocco must be willing to understand the benefits of establishing an artificial archipelago model like Dubai to benefit from coastal life. The Palm Islands in Dubai are one of the best examples of every country with great sea life potential to follow. As a matter of fact, it shows to the world that the huge money investment that Dubai has made over the years for the artificial archipelago has been paying off even before it was built. The project was so successful that the country is now preparing 1.7 billion USD on new artificial islands.
Dubai became a great destination for Saudis and Iran to get away from the theocracy that their countries demanded. The palm islands were even land for the most luxurious hotels, spas, and even Atlantis that brings a lot of money for the country. It’s true that Dubai’s seaside was already in good condition to receive these islands, but they had to do a lot of work to protect the feasible sustainability of the islands.
This is only an example of what could be done in Morocco where it’s possible to have a complete artificial blocking system protecting the marinas from the aggressive Atlantic ocean with the sea currents and waves during the winter. This, of course, will need multimillion investments and intentions from the Government and even from the King Mohammed the Sixth who is known for his passion for the sea. He has been sighted many times going alone in the sea with his private yachts and on some occasions with surfboards and jet skis.
The city of Dubai is such a great example for intercultural and interreligious coherence with other nationalities. Back in the day, one would never dare to approach the Arabic countries, but with Dubai and other cities initiating big stake projects, people from all over the world started coming and visiting and now Dubai is just as a hotspot as California is in the US. The country maintains true Arabic and Islamic tradition that accepts the other and lives with the other in complete coherence that it started to become an example to envy to countries such as Saudi Arabia who maintain a strict theocracy.
How Morocco could begin the project of the artificial project and what this means for the country
The formidable hurdles challenging for the Government to surpass could be the artificial infrastructure to block swell in the water leisure areas, the marina berths for all yacht sizes, especially the 90m plus performing the transatlantic trips, the shipyards as sole units or like ‘branches’ of brands well equipped to offer winter maintenance in competitive prices, well stocked in spares, an intelligent form of security, to prevent an accidental occasion which might destroy the reputation or investment. Protection is the most important thing to keep in mind for such a project, and protection might even the first and last thing the government should keep an eye on.
The Tangiers marina is a potentially new hotspot for yachting destination and cruising tourism in the Mediterranean Sea. It has more than 1,400 berths and more than enough space for the supersized yachts. The city of Tangiers is also home to the Tangiers Royal Yacht club that organizes many national nautical events and brings excitement to the yachting scene in Morocco.
The marina of the biggest city in Morocco that is Casablanca is also a potential spot for a winter yachting destination.
Currently, a beautiful marina for small sizes is the Marina Bouregrag in the capital Rabat. The city is known for holding a lot of unique events of surfing, swimming kayaking, jet skis and yachting competitions in the Marina and on the beach of Oudaya Rabat. The capital also gained the title of the ‘blue beach’ in Skhirat beach several times for its cleanliness and beauty. The Bouregrag Marina is a very good option for the ministry of culture and the ministry of the nautical world. It already creates many job opportunities for young people in the city who are passionate about the sea where they are able to explore their desires in the sea and also earn some money from it. The Government must encourage investors to spend their time in Morocco, study the area and bring more traffic.
The threats and challenges
One of the potentially most dangerous things to happen to a large scale project like a sophisticated Marina yacht destination or an artificial archipelago is a terrorist attack. This has been in the minds of the military, the police and even the people of Morocco; everyone knows how bad it would be to have a terrorist attack happen to Morocco not only because of causalities but also because of the image of Morocco as a safe place for foreigners.
With several grieving bombing attacks killing civilians as serious attacks by Islamic extremists, like in France, everyone is in grief and terrorized by the ideological attacks. There is a real terror attack happening in the world as a response to many dynamics, but Morocco has never been more prepared. The government officials have officially declared the law of forced military recruitment that will educate and train young capable able citizens from the age of 19 to 25 to defend their country and what it stands for, and international acceptance is definitely one of their ideals. With more than 20.000 new trained military recruited young Moroccans, the walls of defense have never been stronger. Moreover, the country’s attention on Intel’s cells is on alert every hour of the day on terror attacks. Many terrorist cells in Morocco have been diffused within a day thanks to very capable and powerful police and military force.
Conclusion
Tourism and international investment have always been in the mind of the Government in Morocco as a potential deal that could transform the entire nation. As for raw needed force, Morocco has an abundance of young hard working citizens willing to take any projects that will enhance their country’s reputation to the top. Infrastructural requirements for projects such as a potential yachting destination for winter, with berthing and artificial archipelago, are going to be needed, but they are possible with efforts from investors and good effective decision making. Morocco is assuredly prepared for change and is eager to make its nautical scene a standout amongst the best in the world. A part of time and exertion must be made into the venture or else the task won’t work out as expected, for example, a total waterfront set like well-structured marinas, superyacht investment, shipyards, further coastal infrastructure, accommodation units, and training organizations.
to be continued
enjoy darlings
Axiom by Medusaudi
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