The current COVID-19 epidemiological situation in Morocco is under control, said Thursday the Head of Government, Saad Dine El Otmani, noting that the Kingdom has avoided the worst in terms of critical cases, fatalities and occupation of intensive care units. El Otmani added, in an address at the opening of the Council of Government, which was held through videoconference, that Morocco has issued new measures related to the Covid-19 pandemic to ease restrictions on the movement of travellers to and from Morocco, which will also facilitate the return of Moroccans living abroad to their country.
In this regard, El Otmani commended the efforts made by the ministry of Foreign Affairs, African Cooperation and Moroccan Abroad, the Ministry of Health, the Ministry of the Interior and other departments on this issue, which required careful study and extensive consultation, to determine the steps to be taken, while safeguarding the health and safety of citizens at the same time. He recalled that, starting from Tuesday, June 15, 2021, flights to and from the Kingdom of Morocco will resume within the framework of exceptional authorizations and according to a gradual opening, taking into account the development of the national and international epidemiological situation according to the classification of the Ministry of Health and based on the official epidemiological data of the World Health Organization, and on the official information published by the countries concerned.
He explained that based on these data, these measures will be updated every two weeks, hoping that “our country will be able to continue easing restrictive measures, while avoiding taking uncalculated decisions, which, God forbid, may cause an escalation of the epidemiological situation”. The head of government stressed that the easing measures will be implemented gradually and steadily, while taking into account the risks that the pandemic still poses, “so that the easing measures brings joy and pleasure to several professions, particularly those related to tourism and to a number of other economic sectors”.
El Otmani said that the easing measures need to be accompanied by the provision of air and sea transportation, and good monitoring conditions, stressing that the Kingdom is aware of these challenges, and that the relevant authorities “take the necessary measures to protect our country and its citizens.” Easing travels to and from Morocco takes place after the recent measures, which required the availability of a vaccination certificate to be able to move between cities without the need for exceptional authorizations, as well as an exemption from the curfew imposed at 11 p.m..
On the other hand, with regard to the economic and social situation, the Head of Government affirmed that thanks to the collective effort, led under the wise leadership of His Majesty King Mohammed VI, the Kingdom was able to reduce the repercussions of this difficult situation and also avoid the worst, which was confirmed by reports of numerous national institutions and international organizations, including the African Development Bank, which praised in a report the measures taken by Morocco, which enabled to spare Morocco a decrease of about 6 percent of the growth rate, and to preserve 71 percent of jobs that were threatened to be lost. He concluded by saying that these positive results were confirmed by other international reports, with a slight difference in the estimates of the numbers, expressing his hope that the national COVID-19 vaccination campaign will take place at a faster pace in the coming stages and achieve collective immunity.
