Rainfall during the current agricultural season in Morocco reached only a paltry 77 millimeters, a whopping 44% decrease from last year, Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries, Rural Development, and Water and Forests, Mohamed Sadiki, told Morocco’s Lower House of Parliament on Monday.
Compared to average rainfall over the last 40 years, this year’s rainfall is down by a significant 54%.
In response to a question during the oral session regarding the effects of scarce rainfall on the agricultural season and rural areas, Sadiki explained that Morocco’s water resources currently stand at a mere 600 million cubic meters (m3), about 83% lower than the average.
Morocco has been experiencing an exceptional and severe climatic situation for the past six years. With increased frequency of droughts, the Minister said, since 2018, there have been six consecutive dry years resulting in an unprecedented decline in the level of Morocco’s water resources, reservoirs, and groundwater.
While average water resources from dams rose from 18 billion m3 during the period 1945-1980 to 14 billion m3 after 1980, over the last five years that has diminished to less than 5 billion m3.
With respect to large irrigation areas, Sadiki said that cultivated agricultural land currently makes up only 400,000 hectares out of a total of 750,000 hectares in Morocco, representing a 44% decrease from previous years, demonstrating that water shortages have severely impacted water availability for large irrigation operations.