Marrakech Opens Tenders for New Jemaa el Fna Restaurant and Bookseller Stands

Al Omrane Marrakech Safi has opened two public tenders for the fabrication, installation and connection of new restaurant and bookseller stands at Jemaa el Fna, adding another works package to the continuing requalification of Marrakech's best known public square.

The tenders were published on September 18. Bids for the restaurant stands are due on October 12 at 10:00, with an estimated contract value of 7.68 million dirhams. The bookseller stands tender closes one hour later, at 11:00, and carries an estimated value of 1.7172 million dirhams.

Photo: Jemaa el Fna, Marrakech. Alraiti, Wikimedia Commons, licensed under CC BY SA 4.0. The photograph predates the current renovation and is used to identify the location, not to show the new stands.

The tender notices do not mean the new stands are already installed. They show that procurement is under way for this part of the project, with the official public procurement portal identified as the place for submission and opening of bids.

Part of the wider Jemaa el Fna requalification

The stand programme follows a broader renovation of Jemaa el Fna led by Al Omrane Marrakech Safi as delegated project manager. In June, the company said the overall requalification had entered its final phase.

That programme includes improvements to the square itself, pedestrian and vehicle circulation, the Arsat El Bilk garden, the carriage area, public toilets and a tourist information kiosk. Al Omrane also said in June that new stands for users of the square were being prepared in consultation with professionals.

For visitors, the latest procurement is significant because the restaurant stalls are a defining part of Jemaa el Fna after dark. The tender documents establish the next contracting step, but they do not provide a confirmed date for when the new stands will be operating.

Travelers should therefore expect the square to remain active while parts of the wider improvement programme continue. Marrakech authorities have previously said works were being carried out progressively to limit disruption to the economic, tourism and cultural activity of Jemaa el Fna.