The Sefrou province aims to integrate the environmental vision into the socio-economic programmes and projects planned within the framework of the Provincial Strategic Development Plan.
In anticipation of the World Climate Change Conference (COP 22) in Marrakech, the provincial council of Sefrou recently organized a round table at the provincial headquarters on “Climate change and the challenges of managing the province's water resources”. This event obtained the label of the scientific commission under the official commission in charge of organizing COP 22. The themes addressed during the meeting focused on “Climate constraints and their impact on local sustainable development” and on “Integrated management of water resources and the needs of sustainable local development”.
“The council will pay more attention to the improvement and protection of the environment and will henceforth work towards better management of the province's water resources,” declared Mohammed Azelmat, President of the Sefrou Provincial Council, from the outset. For his part, the governor of the Sefrou province, Abdelhak Hamdaoui, affirmed that Morocco distinguishes itself in the concert of nations by its policy of improving the environment and protecting it against all forms of pollution, by aiming for a 32% reduction in greenhouse gas emissions by 2030.
The speakers insisted on the imperative contribution of all components of society to the effort of raising awareness about the importance of the Kingdom's organization of COP 22. Emphasis was also placed on the need to mobilize associative actors for the valorization of local initiatives and efforts to protect water resources, given the intrinsic relationship between water and climate.
By way of recommendations, the participants pleaded for the integration of the environmental vision and climate change into the various socio-economic programmes and projects planned within the framework of the Provincial Strategic Development Plan. The advocacy also concerns the mobilization of the necessary means to generalize the supply of drinking water to the rural population of the Sefrou province, within the framework of a partnership approach with the National Initiative for Human Development, the territorial collectivities concerned, and civil society. They also called for the adherence of all partners concerned to the improvement and valorization of water use in household, agricultural, and industrial applications, by opting for water-saving means (limiting the threshold of water consumption, drip irrigation, reducing pollution risks, and using recycled water for irrigation).
The speakers also proposed the organization of provincial actions to raise awareness about environmental protection, the harmful consequences of climate change, the relationship between climate and water, and the importance of integrated water resource management and the requirements of sustainable local development.