Rabat – As Morocco navigates severe, growing water stress, the country’s Ministry of Agriculture and Fisheries and the Ministry in charge of the budget decided to lift their irrigation subsidy on the cultivation of avocado, watermelon, and citrus fruit.
Joint resolution 1323.22 was signed by the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries, and Rural Development, water, and Forests Mohamed Sadiki and the Minister Delegate to the Ministry of Economy and Finance in charge of the budget, Fouzi Lakjaa.
“The crops that are not eligible for support for the localized irrigation projects stipulated in the second paragraph of Article 6 of the joint decision are: avocado trees, new citrus trees, and red watermelons,” indicated the first article of the resolution.
The second article of the resolution stipulates that the decision applies to grant applications for local irrigation projects submitted from July 11, 2022, “the date the joint resolution was published in the official gazette.”
The statement concluded that the relevant authorities at the Ministry of Agriculture and the Ministry of Economy and Finance are in charge of enforcing the requirements of the resolution according to their jurisdiction.
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Several Moroccan environmental associations, including Morocco Environment 2050, have been pleading for the Moroccan government to end the cultivation of watermelon and avocado, one of the most water-intensive crops.
The North African country is currently facing its worst drought in over three decades, prompting ecologists, as well as civil society, to urge Morocco to adopt water rationing and efficiency measures.
Last month, Abdelghani Chehbouni, a professor at Mohammed VI Polytechnic University (UM6P), told Morocco World News: “I don’t think that growing watermelon in Zagora is a good thing.” He added: “As a population, we do not need to consume food outside its normal season … I can live without avocado, but I cannot live without water.”
Chehbouni stressed that Morocco needs to adopt serious measures to address its water scarcity crisis. “It is not realistic to continue growing products that consume a lot of water and are not of prime necessity to the population,” he noted.
