Rabat – The National Office for Electricity and Drinking Water (ONEE) has launched a project to secure the supply of drinking water in the Marrakech region.
The dam project, which began on March 27, is estimated to cost MAD 2.5 billion ($256 million). The African Development Bank (AfDB) will help finance the project, Moroccan news agency MAP reported on April 6.
ONEE will allocate the funds to the region around Al Massira dam, which includes Marrakech, Safi, and the neighboring towns.
The project is part of the National Program for the Supply of Drinking water and Irrigation 2020-2027.
The ambitious seven-year program, headed by King Mohammed VI, aims to increase the number of large dams in Morocco from 145 to 179. It also seeks to increase the capacity of Moroccan dams from 18 billion cubic meters of water up to 27 billion.
The current project is estimated to produce 216,000 cubic meters of drinking water per day for the region.
The project’s main focus point is Al Massira Dam, where a settling station, a treatment station, three pumping stations, and several reservoirs with a total capacity of 93,000 cubic meters will be installed.
A channel of about 125 Kilometers in length and between 1.3 and 2 meters in width will also be established in order to facilitate transporting water.
The AfDB and Morocco previously partnered up in 2020 to perforate Al Massira Dam, which makes it the first dam in Africa to undergo such a process.
The perforation process is meant to collect water through small holes located around the water distribution pipes. These holes will allow water to trickle from the soil around the pipe. That water will get carried away back into the soil according to JDP Nature’s Network.
This project will secure drinking water supply by the year 2040 in Marrakech and the surrounding towns. It will also contribute to improving living standards and supporting economic and social development in the region.
Read also: Morocco Enacts Measures to Ration Water Amidst Severe Drought
Drought in Morocco
Morocco experienced a drop in rainfall in the first few months of 2022. Rainfall reached 75 millimeters across the country in the first few months of the year, representing a 64% decrease from a normal season, severely affecting the country’s agriculture.
Bank Al Maghreb announced in March that the country’s economic growth might not exceed 3.5% due to low rainfall.
Bees have also been reportedly leaving the country’s bee farms due to severe drought. Beekeepers in Inzerki, a southern Moroccan province, reported an abnormal decline in bee population, with one farmer telling the media that he had lost 40 of 90 beekeeping units in two months.
King Mohammed VI launched in February a $1 billion (MAD 10 billion) program to support the agricultural sector during the drought.
