Last October, as part of a vast campaign against animal-drawn carts, the City Council of Casablanca undertook to free up public space in several districts. At the time, the mayor of the metropolis, Nabila Rmili, said that this announcement was ” in a spirit of joint adoption of a decree prohibiting the circulation of carts pulled by animals in urban space“.
This decision had to be implemented as soon as possible, according to the President of the Council, who had declared: “ We no longer accept seeing carts pulled by animals circulating in Casablanca, a city that is nevertheless qualified as intelligent “.
Yet these carts continue to circulate freely in Casablanca, causing problems for citizens in terms of accidents and traffic disruptions. However, the social aspect of the issue should be taken into account. The owners of these carts are generally citizens in a precarious situation who seek to earn a dignified living and therefore depend on the informal economy.
Ultimately, the Casablanca City Council has so far failed to implement its decision to ban the circulation of animal-drawn carts in the streets and neighborhoods. These carts thus continue to populate the landscape of the metropolis with their share of complications.
Although the establishment of stables for animals, livestock and others is prohibited in the urban area of the economic capital of the Kingdom, the phenomenon persists, especially in certain districts such as Hay Hassani, Sidi Bernoussi, Tacharouk and Moulay Rachid.
In a telephone interview with MoroccoLatestNews, a source from the executive office of the Commune of Casablanca confirmed that the implementation of the decision had started despite the difficulties. The Commune takes into account the social situation of the owners of carts and animals, which makes the full application of the decision difficult so far, she underlined, noting however that the local authorities, in collaboration with the Société Casablanca Environnement, are working on its effective implementation.
The decision adopted by the Municipal Council prohibits the presence of animals and carts in green spaces, public squares, all wooded areas of the city, vacant lots, public roads, sidewalks, gardens, underground or elevated passages, public spaces, as well as inside spaces between buildings, residences, residential colonies and houses.
According to the same source, it was also decided to prohibit the establishment of stables for animals, livestock and the like in the urban area of the city, as well as any collection of these in the territory of the Commune, whether for sale or other purposes, except in places or markets designated for this purpose and after obtaining prior authorization.