Morocco’s national carrier, Royal Air Maroc (RAM) is to quadruple its fleet by the end of the next decade to support the development of the tourism sector, under a programme contract signed on Tuesday with the government.
“RAM will quadruple its air fleet from the current 50 to 200 aircraft over the next 15 years,” according to a statement from the office of Prime Minister Aziz Akhannouch.
Prime Minister Akhannouch and the CEO of Royal Air Maroc (RAM), Hamid Addou, signed the investment programme contract in Rabat on Tuesday. It is linked to Morocco’s tourism development plan, which aims to attract 65 million visitors by 2037. This represents around six times more than today.
To this end, the State’s stake in RAM’s capital will be increased “as part of the government’s support for the company’s investment project (…) , the implementation of its development plan, support for its competitiveness and the digitisation and improvement of the quality of its services,” the statement said.
When contacted, the office of the head of government would not say by how much the State’s stake would be increased, nor was the amount of the investment plan disclosed.
RAM, one of Africa’s leading airlines, plans to acquire new aircraft from 2024 as part of the implementation of its development strategy, its CEO was quoted by Moroccan news agency MAP as saying at a press conference in Casablanca.
Bailed out by the state in the wake of the Coronavirus pandemic, the national carrier is also planning to open new international destinations and set up 46 additional services to promote domestic tourism.
Internationally, RAM is targeting the African market in particular, but also the American and Asian markets.
