Shocking figures revealed by the website “visa Schengen”, dedicated to news, updates and statistics of Schengen visas, on the expenses of Moroccans during the year 2021 on visa applications to enter different European countries.

According to the same source, Moroccans paid at least 3 million euros in 2021 for visa applications at one of the embassies and consulates of Schengen countries in Morocco, but did not receive them.

He pointed out that although Morocco is the fifth most requested country in the world for Schengen visas, after the Russian Federation, Turkey, Ukraine and Saudi Arabia, it has the highest rejection rate among these five countries.

Schengen representatives in Morocco rejected a total of 157 thousand one hundred Moroccan visa applications for the region during the same year, which represents 27.6% of the total applications submitted, while the rejection rate in the first four countries was 3.2%, 16.9%, 2.7% and 4.3%, respectively.

Figures from the same source indicate that the French state is the Schengen country most rejected by Moroccans for obtaining a visa, since out of 58310 applications submitted in 2021, this European country rejected 20369, equivalent to 35%.

Spain comes second in terms of the number of rejected applications, but this is much lower than in France, as out of 84,499 Schengen visa applications submitted to the Iberian state, 15,137 were rejected, which is equivalent to 18 per cent.

In this context, Besart Bajrami, founder of the “SchengenVisaInfo” website, said that if we take into account that the cost of a unified, non-refundable Schengen visa application is 80 euros, Moroccans have spent at least 3 million euros on visas that they have not obtained, even though this amount may be twice as high.

“3 million is not even close to the actual amount Moroccans spend on applying for Schengen visas,” he added, referring in this context to a set of additional expenses Moroccans are forced to pay for the preparation of their application file and the required documents, which are mostly covered by a third party (visa filing agencies).

Moroccans are also obliged to pay for travel insurance, they often book hotels and flights with non-refundable fees, as well as paying a small amount here and there for other documents they have to provide, so, adds the same expert, “it is difficult to calculate the total amount spent in this regard in 2021, but the amount of visa fees is at least 3 million euros”, notes Bajrami.

Overall, France, Spain and Germany are the three Schengen countries responsible for the majority of rejected Schengen visas in 2021, where 252,522 applications were rejected out of a total of 379,207 applications rejected for the rest of the region.

Read Also: NGOs condemn ‘discriminatory’ visa conditions for Moroccan applicants

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Awacer TV, reporting to the Council of the Moroccan Community Abroad (CCME), is launching a program schedule on the occasion of the holy month of Ramadan-2021, which aims to strengthen the ties of Moroccans around the world with the identity, culture, traditions and heritage of their country of origin, interacting with their spiritual, cultural and intellectual needs.

The program is rich and varied ranging from documentaries, interviews, music, culture, and history.

For more check https://www.awacertv.com/

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The Embassy of Morocco in Tokyo has declared that all Moroccan citizens residing in Japan are safe following the powerful earthquake that struck Japan on Saturday.

The Kingdom’s embassy in Tokyo confirmed that “the embassy is closely following the developments of the situation in the affected areas, and is mobilized to ensure the safety of Moroccan community members in coordination with the Japanese authorities.”

It should be noted that the 7.1 magnitude earthquake occurred at around 11:07 p.m local time (14:08 GMT), and resulted in the injury of more than 100 people. According to the American Institute of Geological Studies, the earthquake’s focus was estimated to be at a depth of 54 km in the Pacific Ocean off the Fukushima region.

The earthquake was also felt in Tokyo for a short period of time, without any warning of a tsunami.

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The use of cash among Moroccans reached a high record last year due to the consequences of the coronavirus crisis and the ensuing quarantine. This drives families and businesses to withdraw more money from banks than usual.

According to the latest data from Bank Al-Maghrib, the value of cash in circulation at the end of 2020 was approximately 300 billion and 626 million Dirhams, an increase of 50 billion Dirhams from the end of 2019.

This amount of cash in circulation among Moroccans represents an increase of about 20.1 percent compared to the end of 2019. a massive and unique increase due to the impact of the Corona crisis on the Moroccan economy.

This unusual withdrawal bank funds in 2020 reflects the panic and fear caused by the imposed quarantine and the need for cash, both by individuals and companies. Keeping some cash money is seen as a precautionary measure to face the crisis.

Normally, Moroccans withdraw a lot of cash money from the banks during religious events or during the summer holidays, which the government considers wrong as it increases the lack of liquidity in financial institutions and is also a testament to people’ preference for cash instead of using bank cards and other payment solutions.

Therefore, the Moroccan Central Bank will be forced to fund the necessary money into the accounts of banks whenever a similar crisis occurs. This situation leads Abdellatif Jouahiri, the president of Bank Al Maghrib, to urge the frequent use of alternative solutions, such as phone payment services

The large volume of cash in circulation is negatively affecting the banking system’s ability to provide credits, and thus the financing new projects, especially in the face of this time of crisis that coincided with the adoption of a national plan to motivate small enterprises with soft loans.

It is noted that a large number of Moroccans still prefer to deal in “cash” although the authorities have taken measures to limit this through the development of online processes and the launching of mobile payment services which are still not common among Moroccans.

The financial authorities warn against the widespread use of cash as it leads to economic and social inefficiency and entails high costs for companies. This phenomenon also undermines equal opportunities for financial services, reducing the number of electronically financial transactions .

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Geneva – The Moroccan community in Switzerland has expressed its full support for Morocco’s peaceful and life-saving intervention to unblock Guerguarat crossing linking Morocco to Mauritania and to secure the flow of goods and people through this buffer area.

In a joint press release intended to enlighten Swiss and international public opinion, the Moroccan Sahara association in Switzerland, the Socio-Cultural Noor association in Montreux, the Moroccan association of Geneva, and the Rabita Morocco Switzerland Association have recalled that the intervention of Morocco in Guerguarat made it possible to put an end to the provocations of the separatist group which endangers the stability not only of the region, but also of the African continent and its European neighbors.

“For three weeks, militias of the Polisario, an armed separatist group created, financed and hosted by Algeria, proceeded to block traffic in the buffer zone of Guerguarat, on the main road connecting Morocco and Mauritania ”, Recalls the press release, noting that despite the appeals of the Secretary General of the United Nations and of several countries, and despite the resolutions of the Security Council urging the Polisario to withdraw its militias, this armed separatist group has persisted in its actions of obstruction of civil and commercial mobility.

After having observed the great restraint in the face of the multiple incursions of the Polisario in the buffer zone, the Royal Armed Forces intervened to unblock the situation, restore the free movement of goods and people and secure the passage, recall these associations.

“We would like to express our full support for Morocco’s decision to act to put an end to the serious and dangerous provocations of the Polisario which seeks to destabilize the region after its failures on the political and diplomatic levels”, they noted.

The actions of this armed group, they stressed, are a threat to the stability and security of the Sahel-Saharan zone, but also of Europe. “We thus call on Swiss, European and international public opinion to address these provocations harmful to regional peace and stability”, the statement added.

These associations also called “to put an end to the ordeal and suffering endured by the sequestered populations in the Tindouf camps, led by the Polisario, in southern Algeria, by allowing them to return with dignity to the mother country, Morocco”.

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