Forests of Morocco 2020-2030: Programming of 600,000 ha of Forest Plantations by 2030

Rabat – A total of 600,000 hectares (ha) of forest plantations is programmed by 2030 as part of the new “Forests of Morocco 2020-2030” strategy, according to the Department of Water and forests of the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries, Rural Development, and Water and Forests.

“In accordance with the objectives of the new forest strategy, the Department of Water and Forests has programmed an area of ​​600,000 ha of forest plantations in the twelve regions of the Kingdom at a rate of 50,000 ha at the start of the program to reach 100,000 ha by 2030”, indicates the same source in a press release on the 3rd meeting of the steering committee with the central directors of the Department of Water and Forests, held last Thursday by videoconference and chaired by Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries, Rural Development and Water and Forests, Aziz Akhannouch.

This reforestation program, resulting from development plans for the various Moroccan forests which will be the subject of consultations with the neighboring populations, will include the argan tree, the cork oak, the holm oak, the thuja, the cedar, the carob tree, the eucalyptus, the pine and other forest species, specifies the Department, stressing that the involvement of local populations in the sustainable development of forests, through adequate incentives, constitutes a major lever provided by the new strategy.

To support this structuring project and achieve these objectives, an ambitious program has been put in place to internalize, professionalize and secure the seed activity, he said, noting that upgrading facilities, professionalizing processes and securing seed areas of all native species are the main objectives of this program.

Other actions are planned. They involve modernizing four seed station laboratories, instituting a forest seed certification process, in collaboration with the ONSSA and setting up an agreement with the National Seed Marketing Company (SONACOS) with the establishment of a conservation/storage mechanism for cork oak acorns, adds the Department.

460 million plants will be produced by 2030 and a new approach is put in place so that the 54 forest species nurseries of the Department of Water and Forests are gradually entrusted to the private sector.