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The Kingdom of Morocco is at the farthest west point of the Arab
world and North Africa just under the Strait of Gibraltar.
Morocco is strategically located with both Atlantic and Mediterranean
coastlines, and a rugged mountainous interior. Morocco was a French
protectorate from 1912 to 1956, when Sultan Mohammed became king.
He was succeeded in 1961 by his son, Hassan II and then in 1999
he was succeeded by his son King Mohammed VI. The capital city
is Rabat. Other major cities are Marrakesh and Fes and the ports
of Casablanca and Tangier.
The Kingdom of Morocco is at the farthest west point of the Arab
world and North Africa just under the Strait of Gibraltar. Morocco is strategically located with both Atlantic and Mediterranean
coastlines, and a rugged mountainous interior.
PEOPLE
The people of Morocco have a rich diversity and unique cultural
blended from Arab, Berber, European and African influences. Moroccans
are some of the most generous hospitable people in the world.
It's not uncommon to get invited to dinner upon meeting and chatting
with a Moroccan for only ten minutes and if you are honored with
such an opportunity you will be treated to an experience you will
never forget.
Typical Moroccan meals for guests are two to three courses that
extend over several hours of lively conversation. Mint Tea is
an integral part of Moroccan hospitality and daily life that you
are almost sure to experience.
The official language is Arabic and various Berber dialects are
spoken. French is widely spoken in business, government and academic
circles and Spanish is also spoken in the north. English is also
widely used in hotels, restaurants and cafes where there are a
larger number of tourists.
ECONOMY
Morocco has a free market economy that has grown by an average
of 4% a year since 1983. The government has adopted a proactive
privatization creating opportunities in the telecommunication,
utilities and automotive sectors.
There is a free trade zone at the port and airport of Tangier and merchandise entering these zones is exempt from customs, fiscal
and exchange control. There is also a small but active stock exchange
in Casablanca. (http://www.casablanca-bourse.com/) Morocco's exports
include fish citrus fruits, energy, finished products, phosphates
phosphoric acid and raw materials.
Other key areas of the economy are tourism, agriculture, fishing
and forestry Local currency The unit of currency is the Dirham
(DH), which is divided into 100 centimes. Business visitors are
advised to consult their banks for the current rate of exchange.
No import of dirhams is allowed. Overseas visitors need to change
their currency into dirhams locally.
The Moroccan Central Bank (Bank Al Maghrib) fixes the value of
the Dirham using a basket of currencies including the Euro, Dollar
and Yen. The Dirham is not yet fully convertible.
Click below to view property in Morocco
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