MOROCCO, July 5 - The scarcity of irrigation water is the main challenge facing the agricultural sector during the current campaign, said Monday in Rabat, the Minister of Agriculture, Maritime Fisheries, Rural Development and Water and Forests, Mohammed Sadiki.

Sadiki, who was responding to oral questions in the House of Representatives, noted that the current agricultural campaign has been characterized, since its inception, by adverse climatic conditions, marked by a severe drought and a shortage of water resources, and coincided with a tense and unstable international context.

In order to support agricultural activities, the Ministry has established an action plan in two areas, said Sadiki, noting that the first is related to the management of the situation through the deployment of all available means to create favorable conditions and support mechanisms for farmers, and ensure the supply of domestic markets.

The second area is the continued implementation of structural and strategic programs, through the implementation of projects planned under the Génération Green strategy, he added.

Sadiki has, in this sense, highlighted the priority given to the irrigation sector under the Green Morocco Plan (PMV) and the Génération Green strategy, stressing the need for efficient and sustainable use of water resources, with the aim of increasing agricultural yields while minimizing water use.

He further argued that irrigated agriculture has entered a new "era of rationalization and development of irrigation water" and this, by adopting a policy of encouraging the generalization of techniques and irrigation systems that save water, improving the water service and ensuring the sustainability of irrigation infrastructure, through the modernization and rehabilitation of networks.

MAP 05 July 2022