As an African country, Morocco has been engaged in promoting food security and sustainability as part of its green economy policy. HE Abderrahim Rahhaly, Ambassador of the Kingdom of Morocco in Bangkok, was kind enough to share his views on the important issue of food sustainability, now and the future.
, Ambassador Rahhaly began by emphasising, “The Kingdom of Morocco is a country where food security has always been a strategic priority. It is one of the main topics featured in Morocco’s New Development Model initiated by His Majesty King Mohammed VI in 2021.
“Under the High Instructions of His Majesty the King, Morocco has been able to implement an integrated approach that aims to guarantee food security, promote sustainable agricultural and rural development, prioritise the protection of natural resources and adapt to climate change.”
Ambassador Rahhaly admitted that the Kingdom faces many challenges in terms of eco-friendly food practices or regenerative agriculture. He explained, “Preserving natural resources and strengthening resilience to climate change are our main challenges.
“Morocco has been suffering from drought over the past five years, and its impact is beginning to seriously affect dams, water reserves and, consequently, agriculture.
Thanks to His Majesty's enlightening vision, Morocco had launched its first seawater desalination plants in 2015 in order to cope with water stress and improve farming productivity.
“Therefore, Morocco launched the National Drinking Water Supply and Irrigation Program 2020-2027. This mechanism contributes to the development of resilient and sustainable agriculture by improving the efficiency of irrigation systems. Efforts are also focused on improving farmers' productivity by helping them make the transition to renewable energies and improving soil conservation techniques.”
He went on to highlight some key policies that the Kingdom of Morocco has implemented to promote food sustainability. “Agriculture is one of Morocco’s key economic sectors, contributing most largely to its GDP and employment opportunities. For this reason, Morocco is quite aware that natural resources management and preservation policies should be a high priority for sustainability.”
Morocco has also launched a new agricultural strategy, called ‘Generation Green 2020-2030’, to improve the resilience and sustainability of food security. It is an ambitious strategy, with achievable, forward-looking objectives and vision.
In terms of actions and for a better optimization of water management, Morocco has launched four desalination projects as well as seven new projects to satisfy the increasing needs of water for drinking and irrigation. By 2030, another nine projects will be introduced of which 47% of the total capacity will be dedicated to irrigation and industrial needs.
Regarding initiatives to preserve natural resources, Morocco is encouraging the use of its renewable energy assets through the extension of solar energy power in water pumping techniques. The Moroccan approach to promote food sustainability is also fostering the use of technology and making accessible tailor-made financing offers.
On the subject of grassroots and private sector involvement, Ambassador Rahhaly explained, “Morocco has been undertaking policies to engage the private sector in achieving the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). To this purpose the Government has been supporting projects aimed at preserving water resources using renewable energy. To meet the increasing demand of water and fight against severe drought, Morocco is investing through Private-Public Partnerships in tremendous desalination projects. Such PPP has proven its efficiency in farming areas, namely irrigation programs that have been widely supported by the Government for many years.”
The ambassador went on, “More future initiatives are now being considered and researched in Morocco. As mentioned earlier, Morocco’s Green Generation 2020-2030 strategy is now at mid-term and still has five challenging years to meet the objectives as clearly outlined by His Majesty King Mohammed VI. Beside the work and the commitment that has been done until now, in terms of infrastructures and eco-friendly agriculture initiatives, the second pillar of the Green Generation strategy 2020-2030 focuses on human capital.
“The program has allocated a budget of USD 4.4 billion and benefits to 2.7 million people. The objective is to enhance the skills and the capacity building of farmers to improve both their income and living conditions.”
On regional or global levels, Ambassador Rahhaly commented, “Morocco has been joining the efforts deployed by the international community to meet the SDGs, bringing our contributions to regional and continental partners, namely in Africa through sharing experience and good practices.
“A Moroccan phosphate mining producer, leader in fertilizer, the OCP Group, is continuously using its know-how to create fertilizers that are fine-tuned for specific needs of the farming soil. Morocco is supporting many farming projects in Africa and other regions. Some other aspects of support are through the Moroccan financing system. The Kingdom encourages finding solutions and alternatives for environmental concern by financing projects to enhance health, education and agriculture to the benefit of some African countries.
“Morocco is also promoting cooperation in the sustainable management of fishery resources and the development of blue economy. Through sharing our experience and knowledge about the Halieutis Strategy relevant to marine resources sustainable management, Morocco is promoting the highest value of fisheries and aquaculture in ensuring sustainable food security.
“In line with its commitment to sustainability, Morocco, with the World Water Council, created in 2002 The Hassan II Great World Water Prize to encourage and pay tribute to initiators of projects having significantly contributed to the development and use of water resources at technical, economic, social and environmental levels.”
In conclusion, Ambassador Rahhaly reiterated that food security and sustainability are challenging topics in Morocco. The issues are influenced by the country’s agricultural dependence; water scarcity, which has been exacerbated by climate change, and rural development. With the various initiatives and policies implemented by the Moroccan government, public and community support, a resilient food system is on track.
