Morocco’s Minister of agriculture Mohamed Seddiqi said that Morocco has commenced the agricultural season with “very low” dam reserves compared to the past ten years.
The minister made his remarks on Tuesday at the House of Councillors, recalling that domestic rainfall reached only 21.8 millimeters as of October 31. The number is 45% lower compared to the normal rate and a 6.1% drop compared to the previous season.
Dam reserves intended for agricultural irrigation reached 3.2 billion cubic meters, representing a filling rate of 24%, which is 32% lower than the previous season.
“Based on this current situation, 533 million cubic meters have been temporarily allocated to the total irrigated circuits of dams, out of 5.34 billion cubic meters specified in the water management plans,” Seddiqi said.
This year Morocco faces the most severe drought in three decades. The situation caused concern and prompted new water management plans seeking to mitigate the crisis.
In October, King Mohammed VI called for urgent new action to address the water crisis, calling for shared responsibility and greater efforts to ensure rational and responsible use of water.
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Morocco has recently launched its National Program for the Supply of Drinking Water and irrigation 2020-2027, intended to increase the capacity of Moroccan dams from 18 billion cubic meters to 27 billion cubic meters.
Morocco further plans to expand its dam infrastructure and expand basins to tackle water shortages. The current drought has led to a notable decline in Morocco’s agricultural products. In the previous agricultural year, Morocco’s cereal output fell by 67%, reaching 34 million quintals compared to over 100 million quintals produced in the season before.
To mitigate the crisis for smallholder farms, the government is planning to increase aid to farming communities to MAD 3.7 billion ($338.7 million) for a total investment of nearly MAD 7.4 billion ($677.417 million).
SOURCE: Morocco news
