Morocco’s Directorate-General for Customs and Indirect Taxes said smuggling operations between the Spanish enclave of Ceuta and Morocco’s Fnideq would represent between MAD 6 billion and MAD 8 billion a year, according to a recent report.
The report entitled “Lost in Africa: what an alternative and sustainable economic project for the Moroccan border regions of the Spanish presidencies” stated the closure of borders in March 2020 resulted in a loss of over MAD10 billion in smuggling operations.
Morocco recorded nearly 1.5 million unemployed people in 2020, including 9.6% from northern the country, with people mainly working in smuggling jobs. Only 10% of citizens from the North work in formal sectors and deal with those smugglers.
During the pre-pandemic period in 2019, the volume of irregular exports from Ceuta to Morocco reached MAD7.5 billion, said the report.
Smuggling operations encourage money laundering, illicit trafficking of narcotics, and cigarettes, noting that the rate of smuggling of cigarettes fell by 1.37% in 2020, compared to 5.23% recorded in 2019.
Looking for alternatives in northern regions
The report, “Fnideq’s Call,” recommended some suggestions made by senior officials, aiming mainly to find more ways to rebound economically from recent losses, including more investments in public and private sectors in the fisheries, trade, and tourism.
The report stated that Ceuta and Melilla have the potential to become tourist destinations, so long as the enclaves refrain from resorting to smuggling operations.
Morocco needs to implement action plans to raise awareness and sensitize the population about ways to look for alternatives in different sectors, other than relying on smuggling operations, the report suggested.
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