Morocco is one of the countries with the lowest water resources per capita. With successive prolonged periods of drought in the country, public investments are crucial to improve the availability of water for the population.
In Morocco, the National Drinking Water Supply and Irrigation Program (PNAEPI) will benefit from an envelope of 150 billion dirhams ($14 billion) against 115 billion dirhams ($11 billion) previously. The announcement was made on Wednesday, November 30 by the government following the meeting of the Steering Committee of the program.
This program, which spans the period 2020-2027, aims to boost investments to strengthen the supply of drinking water and irrigation in order to improve the resilience of the Cherifian Kingdom in the face of climatic disturbances. It revolves around 5 axes, including the development of the water supply, the management of demand and the valuation of water, and the improvement of the supply in rural areas.
“Water security is a challenge that the government is striving to address to eliminate the water stress our country is experiencing due to successive years of drought and scarcity of surface water resources and aquifers,” it read. in the press release
According to World Bank data, the share of water resources available per capita in Morocco fell from 2,560 m 3 to 620 m 3 between 1960 and 2020, a level below the recommended average of 1,000 m 3.
The financial institution also estimates that this level could decrease further by 2050, to reach 500 cubic meters per inhabitant, thus bringing the Christian Kingdom closer to the international threshold of “extreme water shortage”.
