Doha – Nizar Baraka, Minister of Equipment and Water, revealed earlier this week that Morocco has conducted 70 cloud seeding operations in 2024 as part of its efforts to combat the drought crisis.

These operations were carried out using both aerial and ground-based methods in specific regions of the country.

Speaking at the House of Councillors on Tuesday, Baraka emphasized that Morocco is among the few countries in the world that possesses the capabilities to carry out “artificial rain” operations and has extensive experience in this field.

He also noted that Morocco has been instrumental in transferring this technology to several African countries.

The minister explained that cloud seeding is a complex and costly process, currently implemented in limited areas of Morocco, such as the provinces of Azilal, El Hajeb, and Beni Mellal.

Cloud seeding operations were not responsible for recent floods

These regions were chosen based on their available resources and the presence of a fleet equipped to carry out this technique. However, he mentioned that there are plans to expand this experience to other parts of the country.

Morocco has carried out a total of 140 artificial rain operations since 2021, including 52 aerial operations and 88 ground-based operations using generators.

A total of 21 cloud seeding operations were conducted in 2021, Baraka highlighted, detailing that this number increased to 27 in 2022 and 22 in 2023.

Approximately 70 operations were carried out in 2024, with 30 using ground-based methods and 40 utilizing aerial means.

The minister clarified that the recent floods in some southern provinces of Morocco were not related to the cloud seeding operations, contrary to rumors circulating on some websites. No cloud seeding activities were conducted in the flood-affected areas, he stressed.

Baraka pointed out that precise data determines the timing and method of conducting cloud seeding operations. Extreme weather conditions are avoided based on warning bulletins indicating heavy rainfall to prevent any negative impact. The focus remains solely on drought situations.

The artificial rain program involves the collaboration of several government bodies, including the Ministry of Equipment and Water, Ministry of Interior, Ministry of Economy and Finance, Ministry of Agriculture, the National Defense Administration, the Royal Gendarmerie, and the National High Committee for the “Al-Ghaith Program.”

Recent rainfall across Morocco has brought a welcome surge in dam reserves, which reached a volume of 5 billion cubic meters on October 31, according to Morocco’s Ministry of Equipment and Water.

This boost raises the national reservoir fill rate to 29.7%, an improvement of nearly 5 percentage points over last year’s figure of 24.8% at the same time.