The monitoring and execution committee for the urban upgrading programme of the city of Fez met last week to take stock of the progress of the said programme, which covers a total area of 1,587 hectares.
The progress of the urban upgrading programme of the city of Fez, which was launched in April 2011 by H.M. King Mohammed VI, has reached 55%, indicated the Director General of the Al Omrane-Fez company, El Mehdi Sebti. Speaking last Thursday in Fez during the meeting of the programme's monitoring and execution committee, he stressed that the company, in charge of its implementation in partnership with all stakeholders, including local authorities, elected officials, and other concerned institutions, has completed many projects of this programme in numerous neighbourhoods.
The projects carried out within the framework of this programme, the cost of which amounts to 756 million DH, with a financial contribution from the Ministry of Housing and Urban Policy of around 250 million DH, concern the neighbourhoods of Jnanate, Sehb El Ward, Al Massira, Zouagha Bas, Douar El Berkani, and Haj Driss, in addition to the North zone and Sidi Amira, he added. He also recalled that this programme, aimed at the requalification and urban renewal of under-equipped neighbourhoods, focused on the development of the entrances to these neighbourhoods, the improvement of the road network level, and the development of green spaces and public squares for the benefit of 38,000 households. The work on the projects included in the programme will continue this year according to a participatory approach, he continued.
For his part, the Wali of the Fez-Meknes region, Governor of the Fez prefecture, Saïd Zniber, emphasised the importance of the urban upgrading programme of the city of Fez dedicated to improving the living conditions of the inhabitants of several under-equipped neighbourhoods and strengthening the city's urban landscape, while advocating in this context for the pooling of efforts for the completion of the various projects of the programme as soon as possible. The Wali also announced the launch of another upgrading project for the city during the coming weeks, focused on the implementation of integrated projects relating to basic infrastructure in the fields of health and housing, calling for the development of a study to diagnose the situation at the level of under-equipped neighbourhoods and an action plan taking into consideration the needs at the level of the various sectors. He also made it known that this new programme, which spans the 2017-2021 period, will focus on social sectors in the various under-equipped neighbourhoods in order to allow disadvantaged social strata to improve their living conditions, ensure environmental protection, and revive the economic dynamic. Furthermore, the ambitious upgrading programme of the city of Fez spans a total area of 1,587 hectares and will benefit more than 69,000 households.
