The water crisis affecting several regions of Morocco has become palpable. Water cuts have been observed in several cities in the Kingdom, while other areas have difficult access to this vital resource. Small farmers are suffering greatly from this water crisis, especially after the last two years of drought.
During the press briefing organized this Thursday at the end of the Council of Government, the issue of climate change impacting our planet, as well as the succession of years of drought that our country has experienced and the challenges related to water security were discussed.
The Minister responsible for relations with Parliament was questioned on this subject, in particular on the projects announced by the government, in particular the project to connect hydraulic basins, in particular that of the Sebou basin, one of the richest in groundwater in Morocco.
In response to this question, the government spokesperson said that the cost of the Sebou basin water connection project amounts to 6 billion dirhams. This project will be completed this summer and will serve the Bouregreg basin, he said.
As part of this same project, another project is underway in Fez, at a cost of 616 million dirhams, aimed at partially purifying water contaminated by olive waste during the period of olive oil production. The Minister explained that the services concerned will work on the purification of this water and will transport it to remote areas to guarantee high quality.
Separately, Baitas said that the Ministry of Equipment and Water is accelerating the construction of 18 large dams nationwide, which will increase the Kingdom’s total water stock by 5 billion cubic meters.
The Minister also mentioned the city of Agadir, which houses the largest seawater desalination unit in the Souss region, part of which is dedicated to agriculture and another to the city of Agadir.
In addition, the production capacity expansion program will experience a remarkable acceleration, he said. He also noted that in Dakhla, work is underway to build a seawater desalination unit, part of which will be used to irrigate some 5,000 hectares.
An agreement was recently signed with the OCP (Office Cherifien des Phosphates) to serve the towns of Safi and El Jadida, added the Minister. In addition, the launch of a desalination unit in the Oriental region is planned soon, with an absorption capacity of up to 250 million cubic meters.
The launch of the Casablanca unit is also planned by the end of the year, accompanied by a major program aimed at accelerating projects for the use of wastewater for watering green spaces, etc.
This project will make it possible, in its first phase, to mobilize 100 million cubic meters of water per year, through the realization of 33 programmed projects, of which 18 are currently in progress, specified Baitas. He also noted that at the rural level, actions are being taken to address the water shortage in some regions.