Moroccan officials have placed Airbnb and Booking.com in their crosshairs, looking to level the playing field for traditional hotels as a “new reality” forces Africa’s biggest tourism destination to re-evaluate efforts to drum up business.
Vacation rentals offered on online portal Airbnb will be subject to tax beginning next year, bridging a legal void that has hurt the more than 3,800 hotels and hundreds of travel agencies operating in the country, said Mehdi Taleb, head of regulation, development and quality at Morocco's Tourism, Air Transport and Social Economy Ministry. Tax officials will work with undercover hotel inspectors and interior ministry informants to ensure enforcement.
Authorities will also help local online travel platforms offer attractive packages aimed at giving them greater footing against online global sites such as Booking.com.
The changes are part of the North African kingdom’s efforts to confront a “new reality which is distorting visibility for our tourism development strategies,” Taleb said in an interview. With the help of online portals, 60 per cent of the 10-million-plus holiday-makers visiting Morocco yearly plan their holiday by themselves – sidestepping the conventional tourism market.
About 20,000 people list properties on Airbnb in Morocco, second on the continent only to South Africa. With tourism receipts topping US$7 billion (Dh25.71bn) last year, the industry is Morocco’s top hard-currency earner and accounts for 10 per cent of the economy.
Morocco joins a list of governments applying taxes and regulations to online lodging marketplaces such as Airbnb. Critics say the unregulated, unlicensed short-term rental market has hurt conventional travel operations and driven up property prices, while depriving governments of revenue.
Jaber Al-Hababi, who owns the no-frill Auberge Dardara in up-and-coming tourist draw Chefchaouen, welcomed the authorities' plans as "the logical thing to do", but sounded a note of scepticism.
"Outwitting the internet and the new technologies is much easier said than done," Al-Hababi said.
“The market here is totally imbalanced because of Booking.com, Airbnb and the informal rental sector,” he said. “Many people in Chefchaouen squat with relatives so that they can rent their own homes to tourists. So poverty is the problem.”
Greatest of All Time
Starring: Vijay, Sneha, Prashanth, Prabhu Deva, Mohan
The Buckingham Murders
Starring: Kareena Kapoor Khan, Ash Tandon, Prabhleen Sandhu
Director: Hansal Mehta
Rating: 4 / 5
RESULT
Brazil 2 Croatia 0
Brazil: Neymar (69'), Firmino (90' 3)
The specs
Engine: 2.0-litre 4-cyl, 48V hybrid
Transmission: eight-speed automatic
Power: 325bhp
Torque: 450Nm
Price: Dh359,000
On sale: now
The biog
Name: Fareed Lafta
Age: 40
From: Baghdad, Iraq
Mission: Promote world peace
Favourite poet: Al Mutanabbi
Role models: His parents
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Anghami
Started: December 2011
Co-founders: Elie Habib, Eddy Maroun
Based: Beirut and Dubai
Sector: Entertainment
Size: 85 employees
Stage: Series C
Investors: MEVP, du, Mobily, MBC, Samena Capital
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Hotel Data Cloud profile
Date started: June 2016
Founders: Gregor Amon and Kevin Czok
Based: Dubai
Sector: Travel Tech
Size: 10 employees
Funding: $350,000 (Dh1.3 million)
Investors: five angel investors (undisclosed except for Amar Shubar)
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UAE finals day
Friday, April 13
Rugby Park, Dubai Sports City
3pm, UAE Conference: Dubai Tigers v Sharjah Wanderers
6.30pm, UAE Premiership: Dubai Exiles v Abu Dhabi Harlequins
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The specs: 2017 Ford F-150 Raptor
Price, base / as tested Dh220,000 / Dh320,000
Engine 3.5L V6
Transmission 10-speed automatic
Power 421hp @ 6,000rpm
Torque 678Nm @ 3,750rpm
Fuel economy, combined 14.1L / 100km
Herc's Adventures
Developer: Big Ape Productions
Publisher: LucasArts
Console: PlayStation 1 & 5, Sega Saturn
Rating: 4/5
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match info
Maratha Arabians 138-2
C Lynn 91*, A Lyth 20, B Laughlin 1-15
Team Abu Dhabi 114-3
L Wright 40*, L Malinga 0-13, M McClenaghan 1-17
Maratha Arabians won by 24 runs