Afrik21
Christoph Haushofer
Pollutec Maroc celebrates its 10th anniversary, from October 2 to 5 in Casablanca, and is more open than ever to Africa. After Ivory Coast, guest of honour at the 2017 edition, it is Guinea Conakry’s turn to see the red carpet roll out; while the Africa Space will host numerous workshops on various environmental themes.
At the same time, this year’s show has two thematic highlights: innovation, which will live up to the rhythm of the pitches that will be held at the heart of the show; and the sustainable city, which will for the first time be the subject of a major symposium.
In recent years, and particularly since COP 23, and following its return to the African Union, Morocco has no longer hidden its African ambitions and the leadership it intends to exercise in terms of energy and ecological transition on the continent. The latest example to date is the launch in spring, in Addis Ababa (Ethiopia), of the construction site for a training centre for trainers in water and irrigation technologies in Africa, entirely financed by the Mohammed VI Foundation.
Morocco has just received the award from the New Partnership for Africa’s Development (NEPAD) Agency, which is part of the African Union (AU). The award was presented in Nairobi, Kenya, at the end of the 7th Special Session of the African Ministerial Conference on the Environment (AMCEN). Nezha El Ouafi, Moroccan Secretary of State for Sustainable Development, received the award for “Morocco’s distinguished contributions to environmental management and environmental governance in Africa.”
It was therefore only logical that Pollutec Maroc should accompany this movement towards the continent, opening up more and more to Africa, as the show began to do in 2014.
The first marker of this African ambition renewed in 2018: Guinea Conakry, guest of honour at this tenth edition. A Guinean delegation of decision makers from the country, led by the Ministry of the Environment, Water and Forests, will be present throughout the exhibition to present current projects and discuss with potential partners.
In the meantime, the Africa Forum will be held, which will provide an opportunity to discover African initiatives in different fields: water, waste, renewable energies, energy efficiency and agriculture. As well as an informal meeting space, dedicated to Africa, in tandem with the business meetings organised by Pollutec Maroc and Ademe (French Environment and Energy Management Agency) around the BtoB platform.
Innovation and the sustainable city: two strong themes of this 10th edition.
The innovation, supported by some 200 exhibitors at the show, will also be presented in a very lively way on “l’espace Pitch”: a stage at the heart of the show with 7 minutes each to present a new product, a success story or a remarkable achievement. The passages will be punctuated by many themes. Half-days will be dedicated to the different sectors of the show, startups and incubators, or even to the winners of the “Pollutec Maroc Environment Trophies”. The “Cleantech Program” will award 6 prizes to projects that best promote green jobs, innovation in clean technologies and green entrepreneurship.
In the same period, two symposiums will be held: the “Sustainable Territories” and the “Sustainable City” symposiums. The latter was set up this year to answer the increasingly pressing questions of the city of tomorrow. With two challenges in mind: greenhouse gases, 70% of which are emitted by cities, and the urban explosion that Africa will experience in the coming years. The Sustainable Cities Forum will therefore focus on these two questions: how to make the city more energy efficient and environmentally friendly?
And on this theme, Morocco is also very committed, particularly in Casablanca itself where the municipality is working on its smart-city project, with 70 digitisation initiatives that will promote intelligent mobility and energy savings. In addition, in October 2018, the Moroccan authorities will launch a platform in Casablanca to optimise the use of renewable energies. Finally, the city of Kenitra, also present in the “Sustainable Cities” area, will certainly present the “Mehdia Sustainable City” project, a few steps from the “capital” of Gharb, which prefigures what the city of tomorrow could be. Kenitra will also host the first African site of the French company FHE, specialised in energy storage. FHE has just signed an agreement with MEDZ, a Moroccan company specialised in the development and management of industrial business parks. This agreement provides for the construction of a plant in the Atlantic Free Zone in Kenitra, in North West Morocco.
Another new feature of this edition is the conferences on green finance, with the participation of the EBRD Morocco, among others, which will highlight the financial sector’s commitment to sustainable development and energy transition issues. In this regard, Morocco’s Climate Change Competence Centre has just launched a process to strengthen the capacities of regional actors to access climate funds. Finally, Morocco can also boast of a successful PPP to save the Chtouka aquifer. The BRL engineering office that developed it, with its Moroccan partner Agro Concept, is also present at the show.
Yasmin Rico
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Useful information
Organised under the aegis of the Ministry of Energy, Mines and Sustainable Development, the Secretariat of State for Sustainable Development and the Ministry of Industry, Investment, Trade and the Digital Economy, Pollutec Maroc is the leading event for eco-technologies and the green economy in North Africa, with over 200 exhibitors and 4 days of non-stop events from the 2nd to the 5th of October 2018 in Casablanca.
For more information, visit: https://www.pollutec-maroc.com.
More information on environmental news in Morocco: https:https://www.afrik21.africa/en/
