TOURISM
Mediterranean coast) and Essaouira (Atlantic coast) will be described emphasizing how tourism investments have influenced the projects and how the projects have coped with their consequences.
Hotel complex under construction, M’diq, Morocco Credit NM
Mass Tourism in Coastal Areas Cross-section of SMAP III activities in Morocco: Nador, Moulouya and CdLs in M’diq & Essaouira Context Tourism is a strong economic driver in the Mediterranean. Most countries on the southern shore of the Mediterranean, notably Tunisia, Egypt and Morocco, are important actors in the international tourism market, while others such as Algeria and Libya have opened to tourism only recently. The Kingdom of Morocco is a very popular tourist destination but the bulk of the tourism has always had a cultural focus (imperial cities etc.). In the light of this, in 2001 the Ministry of Tourism launched a national tourism development plan, “Plan Azur”. It aims to increase considerably the number of tourists visiting the country to enjoy the beauty of its Mediterranean and Atlantic coasts, as has been happening for decades in Tunisia and Egypt. This has opened an era of very large investments along the coast, with six mega-projects for new hotels, apartments, marinas and golf courses scheduled for completion by 2010. Some doubts have emerged recently1 with several key investors reported to be pulling out as a result of the global financial crisis. All the SMAP III projects implemented in Morocco have had to deal with this wave of tourism development and they have done so in different ways. It seems interesting to provide an overview of these cases to derive some lessons on the relationship between ICZM and mass tourism. The cases of Nador, Moulouya, M’diq (all on the 1 “Nuages
sur le Plan Azur”, Jeune Afrique, n.2525, 31 May 2009
Nador The province of Nador is home to the largest lagoon in the southern Mediterranean. Lack of integration and proper management in this coastal area has led to problems, notably disputes over the land tenure system, pollution from urban sewers, landfills, industrial effluents and agricultural runoff, coastal erosion, and anarchic urbanization. Fisheries and fish-farming production has decreased during the past few years due to degradation in the water quality of the lagoon. The Nador Project worked in close consultation with all stakeholders (fishermen, institutions, municipalities, citizens etc.) with the aim of developing an ICZM plan for the lagoon of Nador and surrounding areas (Cap de Trois Fourches and Boudinar). Tourism was never an important part of the economy in Nador and the area is virtually unknown to the international tourism market at the moment. But in 2008 “Mar Chica Med” a public interest company fully owned by the Moroccan Government was created with the aim of transforming Nador lagoon into a major international tourism destination. It should be noted that this is not part of the Plan Azur but was developed separately from a royal initiative. After almost two years work in Nador, the coordinators of the Nador Project suddenly had to deal with a new powerful actor, Mar Chica Med. Following preliminary discussion with the director of the state-owned company, it became obvious that Mar Chica Med was not just another stakeholder to be consulted; it was the only one that really counted. Mar Chica Med had a tourism development plan to implement and the power to impose decisions on all other institutions in the territory without having to bother consulting anybody. Decisions were taken by the company and all other institutions had to adapt their plans to these decisions. Mar Chica Med’s arrival was greeted with mixed feelings from the local institutions and population. The prospect of economic development was welcome but exactly what that implied in practice and what
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