Morocco launches water strategy amid drought and floods
By the AFREEQUE newsroom, based on MAP
Illustrative image · DigitalByNADAS Photography · Pexels · Licence PexelsMorocco’s Equipment and Water Minister Nizar Baraka announced a national water security strategy addressing drought, floods and rising temperatures. He said 53% of rainfall falls on just 7% of Morocco, while the plan includes speeding up major dam construction, reports MAP.
Morocco has launched a new water security strategy taking account of drought, floods, rising temperatures and irregular rainfall, Equipment, Water and Forests Minister Nizar Baraka announced in Rabat on Monday before the House of Representatives, according to the MAP news agency.
The minister said that 53% of rainfall was concentrated in 7% of Morocco’s territory, while the unequal distribution of resources and the overexploitation of groundwater made it difficult to supply some regions. The strategy provides for the acceleration of major dam construction: 17 facilities, representing a storage capacity of 5.4 billion cubic metres, are under construction. Six medium-sized dams are also being built and three others are planned.
Twelve new dams have been launched, with an estimated additional capacity of 4.9 billion cubic metres. The government is aiming for a national storage capacity of 27 billion cubic metres by 2031, according to Nizar Baraka.
The first phase of the water transfer between the Sebou and Bouregreg basins has been completed. The second phase, between the Bouregreg and Oum Er-Rbia basins, is due to begin in 2027 and enable nearly 8 million cubic metres of water to be transferred, according to the minister.
