The current situation of the old Medina, its ramparts, alleys, old buildings... is worrying. Long marginalised from planning and urbanisation policies, these old urban fabrics are undergoing continuous degradation. The Kasbah and its relics do not benefit from urban management capable of preserving and safeguarding its history and wealth. Not being classified as universal heritage, the old Medina of Mohammedia, repository of a rich historical and architectural heritage, has not been restored. Worse still, some of its old buildings are threatening to collapse. The consequences of recent years in terms of planning and urbanisation as well as the constraints of time have altered the authentic aspect of this high place of History. Yet, all those who stay in Mohammedia are captivated by the Kasbah, a mythical place steeped in history, witness to a rich and millennial civilisation linking the past of Mohammedia, marked by numerous vestiges, to its present.

In 1068, the Andalusian geographer Abou Oubeïd Allah El Bekri defined Fedala as the coastline of the Tamesna country. Opinions differ as to the origin of its name. Fedala would be a simplification of "Fadl Allah" (gift of God) or Fadela "the virtuous". At the time, Fedala was considered the crossroads of several cities of the Kingdom, all Moroccan populations are represented there. Of the Zenatas who were the first inhabitants of the region, only a population remains divided between Mohammedia and the neighbouring regions. Three centuries ago, numerous ethnic groups succeeded one another in the city, an Arab tribe from Mauritania and the "Mejdba" who settled between Mohammedia and Mediouna, today more numerous than the Zenatas. Beyond the traces of the Portuguese who built some buildings of the Kasbah, a bridge, and a church, it was Sultan Sidi Mohammed Ben Abella who installed the grain warehouses where the wheat and barley harvests of the Tamesna province were stored. He also erected the White Mosque, the ramparts, and a Riad. Fédala became a city of stature in 1912 when Georges Hersent created the Franco-Moroccan company there, which took an important part in the development of the city. In July 1914, the Compagnie du port de Fédala was formed. In 1923, the railway line on standard gauge track connecting Marrakech to Oujda via Fedala was built. The seaside city took shape in 1925 and the esplanade was built in 1938. In the aftermath of the Second World War, the Office chérifien de l'habitat took charge of the creation of the Fédala-El Alia housing estates to the detriment of the shanty towns. The construction of the "Sea Line" in 1951 made Fédala the first and most modern oil port in North Africa. On 25 June 1960, the late HM King

Mohammed V baptised it Mohammedia on the occasion of the laying of the 1st stone of the Samir refinery; which contributed to the development of the city at an accelerated pace.

Despite its history and architectural value, the Kasbah and its old buildings, its walls, its old warehouses, are threatened and suffer harshly from the vagaries of time. The collapses that have taken place in the old Medina of Casablanca, Fez, and other cities of the Kingdom are there to remind us of the obvious risks due to the fragility of certain old buildings. Heritage, underlines an inhabitant of the Medina, "is the legacy of time. It is a living memory whose conservation requires the rehabilitation of these places". The originality of the Kasbah is that it is located in the centre of the modern city and that it continues to live in the present and adapt to it without denying its soul or losing its originality. Everything is alive in the Medina. According to an associative actor in the region, the safeguarding of this heritage is everyone's responsibility. "Every citizen is an actor of the city and not a spectator. That is why it is necessary to introduce to everyone a culture of the city and remain sensitive to the value of heritage and history," he specified. Lovers of Mohammedia underline the need to look into the richness and diversity of the old urban fabrics in order to reconcile the city with its history.

The urban commune of Mohammedia has reserved 2,919,000 dirhams to redevelop the Kasbah mosque and the Green March square.

This budget is reserved for the paving with self-locking pavers of the main entrance and the surroundings of the mosque. The upgrading of street furniture and decorative public lighting at the mosque square are also included. Furthermore, the developments of the Medina must restore its physical presence and preserve its character. The original model and the degraded parts must be consolidated and restored.

-* Spanish, Genoese, and Venetian fishermen and merchants were already trading with Fédala in the 14th and 15th centuries.

-* In the 17th century, this port then called Fédala or "L'isle de Fédala" served mainly as a temporary refuge for the light vessels of the corsairs of Salé, pursued by the frigates of the King of France.

-* Fédala was founded in 1912 by Georges Hersent.