€200 million: Egyptian-Emirati alliance to establish a massive tourism project in Morocco 

Al Nowais Investments, Sunrise Group, and billionaire Samih Sawiris are targeting investments worth 200 million euros to develop the first phase of a huge tourism project in the city of Essaouira on the west coast of Morocco, in an Egyptian-Emirati alliance to build this project.

According to Arab media, the project in the city of Essaouira, overlooking the Atlantic Ocean, on an area of 2.5 million square meters, includes the construction and development of 800 hotel rooms, which will be implemented in stages.

Components of the Essaouira City Project in Morocco

Investments will be made over 5 years as part of an integrated development plan, which includes the construction and development of 270 hotel rooms, targeted for completion by the end of 2027, and the construction of a new hotel with a capacity of 350 rooms within 4 years.

The first phase includes the establishment of an entertainment and commercial village on an area of 300,000 square meters, comprising 150 hotel rooms, in addition to golf courses, as well as 30 small hotel units “boutique” within the components of the project.

The second phase is scheduled to begin five years after the launch of the first phase, according to sources who spoke to Asharq Bloomberg.

The project dates back to 2004, before it was acquired by the Egyptian-Emirati alliance and redeveloped as part of an investment plan aimed at enhancing the hotel and tourism capacity in the region to be a distinctive destination for tourists from all over the world.

The project reflects a growing trend towards Egyptian-Arab partnerships in the regional tourism sector and in African countries that possess enormous potential, with a focus on developing major coastal destinations that rely on hotels and entertainment as a driver of growth and boosting the economies of countries.

The size of tourism in Morocco

Tourism in Morocco is witnessing continuous momentum, which has led it to record record numbers in terms of the number of tourists and revenues during the past year. This is what is driving it to target 26 million tourists before 2030, given its enormous potential as a distinguished African country in tourism and its stunning natural resources that attract tourists from all over the world.

In 2025, the Kingdom of Morocco received a record number of tourists, reaching approximately 19.8 million tourists, with an annual increase of 14%, enabling it to top the list of tourist destinations in Africa for the second year in a row.

The tourism sector contributes about 7% to Morocco’s GDP, provides about 850,000 direct jobs and more than 3 million indirect jobs, with the addition of approximately 25,000 jobs annually, which pushes the country towards further development of this vital sector.