Tetouan – His Majesty King Mohammed VI emphasized the need to regularly update the national water policy mechanisms and to establish a strategic goal, regardless of the conditions or circumstances, in order to cope with growing water needs and constraints.

This strategic goal is to provide drinking water to all citizens, and mobilize at least 80% of the irrigation water needed, across the national territory, the Sovereign said in His Speech to the Nation on Monday evening on the occasion of the Throne Day.

In this respect, His Majesty the King deemed it “necessary to complete the dam construction program and to give priority to the dams planned in the areas receiving significant rainfall”.

The Sovereign also recommended accelerating the completion of large-scale projects for inter-basin transfers: those from the Oued Laou and Loukkos basins to the Oum Er-Rbia basin, through the Sebou and Bouregreg basins.

His Majesty the King also called for an acceleration of the completion of seawater desalination plants, according to the program set for this purpose, which aims to produce more than 1.7 billion cubic meters annually.

“Thus, by 2030, Morocco will cover more than half its drinking water needs thanks to these desalination plants. This will also make it possible to irrigate vast farming areas, thereby helping to enhance the country’s food security,” the Sovereign added.

His Majesty the King cited, in this regard, the Casablanca desalination plant, which will be the largest of its kind in Africa, and the second worldwide to be 100% powered by clean energy, noting that the greatest challenge remains “the completion of the plants programmed and the related renewable energy projects on time and without delay.”

The Sovereign also highlighted the need to expedite the completion of the electrical connectivity project to transfer renewable energy from the Southern Provinces to the country’s Central and Northern areas.

In this regard, His Majesty the King called for the development of a national water desalination industry as well as courses for the training of specialized engineers and technicians, also encouraging the creation of Moroccan companies specialized in the construction and maintenance of desalination plants.

Referring to the issue of rationalizing water use, the Sovereign stressed that it was “unacceptable” to spend billions in order to mobilize water resources, only to see that “cases of waste and misuse continue to exist.”

“Preserving water is a national responsibility that concerns all institutions and all stakeholders. It is also every citizen’s solemn duty,” the Sovereign said, calling on the authorities concerned to be stricter when it comes to protecting the nation’s water resources, to set in place the water police, and to reduce the excessive use of water and chaotic water pumping practices.

His Majesty the King also urged further coordination and consistency between the water policy and the agricultural policy, especially in periods of water scarcity, and called for the use of drip irrigation across the country.

In the same vein, the Sovereign gave His guidelines to adopt a “more ambitious program for the treatment and reuse of water,” emphasizing the need to encourage innovation and investment in new water management technologies.