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Rabat – Oujda is set to host Morocco’s Second National Congress of Potholing and Geotourism, organized by the Faculty of Sciences of Oujda’s Mohammed First University in cooperation with the Moroccan Explorers Association.
The event will take place from between November 19-21 this year.
In the press release announcing the event, organizers said they aim to achieve two primary goals: promoting scientific discussions between enthusiasts and experts, and making the congress an important channel for exchanging experiences and academic scientific studies.
The conference’s overreaching ambition revolves around promoting discussions around the importance of Morocco’s natural heritage generally, and its geological features specifically, noted the press release.
It will focus on cave exploration, archaeology, geotourism, and the protection of Morocco’s heritage and natural sites, among other subjects.
The event is to be a regular occurrence, happening every 2 years in a Moroccan city, with members of the organizing committee voting for Oujda to host this year’s conference.
It will also be held in person and have participation in the form of lectures and panels, with several Moroccan and foreign experts expected to attend.
“The main goal of these lectures,” the press release says, “is to emphasize the importance of potholing as a center of studies, as well as the importance of valuing and protecting caves and geological features.”
The history of potholing – the practice of exploring caves as a pastime – in Morocco goes back all the way to the 1930s, when explorers came to Morocco in order to explore the country’s “Karst” formations.
Norbert Casteret, a major influence and pioneer in the field, is known to have explored the region south of Taza at one point.
