In Morocco 39% of the territory is made up of dry or partly-dry areas – the main cause of a number of social and economic problems, notably massive urbanization forcing tens of thousands to leave their homes every day and move to major cities along the coast to seek a better lifestyle, Moroccan High Commissioner for Water and Forests Abdeladim El Hafi told the local Map news agency in an interview marking World Day to Combat Desertification on Monday.
The territory’s progressive desertification is a complex problem, he said. Morocco has been trying to deal with it for a while now but today, considering the results so far achieved, the country needs to tackle them with a different approach and method. Confronting this issue however means implementing measures to boost development by taking into account the diversity of each region.
‘Finding technical and scientific solutions is not enough’, said the high commissioner. ‘It is most important to implement them considering the socio-economic peculiarity and potential of each region in order to avoid any imbalance in the eco-system’.
El Hafi went to the heart of the problem, calling for the need to reassess a national plan against desertification kick-started in 2001 which, he admitted frankly, gave great results but also registered evident failures.
Updating the programme, a step which is deemed necessary, will enable authorities to embrace a new approach in view of the high commissioner’s ten-year programme which will come into force in 2014.
The national programme will focus on a number of indicators to follow up on progress of public policies in each region and abide by the principle of sustainable development.
The new strategy of the Moroccan government will thus vie for economic development while safeguarding the environment, social justice and territorial solidarity.
