The president of Ceuta requested, on Thursday, that the visa requirement be maintained for all Moroccans wishing to enter the presidency. In a press conference, Juan Vivas said that this measure would have helped reduce to 80% the number of entries through customs and has had a significant positive impact on the presidency.
The official also said that he had transmitted this issue to the Minister of Foreign Affairs, European Union and Cooperation, José Manuel Albares, in a meeting to discuss the opening of commercial customs.
Therefore, Juan Vivas said he asked the minister to “maintain the visa requirement because there are sufficient arguments to support this position”. Before the Covid-19 pandemic, Moroccans residing in the province of Tetouan could enter Ceuta without a visa, in derogation of the Schengen Treaty.
In addition, he detailed that since the opening of the border in May 2022, the number of people who have benefited from a pass, between 20,000 and 25,000 in the past, now reaches 3,000 to 3,500 people per day, a drop of 80%.
Vivas also said that the number of deliveries in the city hospital has dropped by 50%, emergencies have decreased by 30%, compulsory education by 10% and the number of incidents in the port by 90%. “This decrease in the entry of people through the border is related to the demand for visas, and I have asked the minister to continue this measure,” he commented.
However, the president of the Spanish government of the city maintained that the opening of commercial customs “will bring stability and security to trade relations” between Ceuta and Morocco and will continue “to normalize the operation” of the border. “We must be careful, but there is no doubt that if the opening of the customs is achieved in January, it will be a historic step for several decades,” he added.
The president said that José Manuel Albares has confirmed an opening in January.
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