IAEA back up Morocco’s drinking water and environment projects

Image via Wikipedia

The International Atomic Energy Agency (AIEA) will continue supporting Morocco to end its projects on  drinking water, the environment and nuclear electricity, the AIEA’s Director General Yukiyo Amano informed on Monday.

This was announced during a meeting with Morocco’s Minister of Energy, Mines, Water and the Environment Amina Benkhadra on the sidelines of the 54th IAEA’s General Conference.Amano pointed up Morocco’s key role in offering training to French-speaking Africans, as un , that the an example to follow.

Benkhadra highlighted the support given by the IAEA in setting up a centre for nuclear studies near Rabat, in addition to its assistance in the fields of water, health, and the environment

Source: Agence Maghreb Arabe Presse, 21/09/2010

Morocco’s drinking water facility invested over $ 422 mln in 2009

Morocco’s drinking water facility (ONEP) had invested in 2009 over 422 million dollars (3.7 billion dirhams), bringing its coverage rate to 89% in the rural area.

The program of generalizing access to drinking water in the rural area succeeded in 2009 in supplying an additional population of 246,000 inhabitants, besides 120,000 people in 24 centers, according to figures released, Friday (9.7.2010) in Rabat, by ONEP’s board of directors. 

As for the urban area, the 2009 newly-implemented projects required building 6 treatment plants, including a desalination plant and two demineralization plants. This enabled reaching an additional rate of flow of 1,706 l/s.

The state-owned facility carried out 240 km of supply mains, built 23 new water tanks with a capacity of 14,200 m3 and extended the supply network by 400 km. It had also operated a 308 km-wastewater collection system and three wastewater plants treating 11,026 m3 per day. 
  
Energy Minister Amina Benkhadra, who was presiding over the board of directors’ meeting, lauded ONEP’s 2009 achievements.  

Related site: ONEP

Source: Agence Maghred Arabe Presse, 9 July 2010.

Morocco sanitation receives World Bank support

Morocco will receive $175 million from the World Bank to increase access to potable water supply in the Nador, Driouch, Safi, Youssoufia, Sidi Bennour and Errachidia provinces reported Working With Water on June 16th 2010. According to the World Bank, the project also aims to reduce water-borne disease infection in children. Another $43 million was allocated for wastewater treatment in the Oum Er Rbia basin.

Related news: Magharebia, 28 Jan 2010
Source: Morocco sanitation receives World Bank support, Magharebia , 17 Jun 2010.

Morocco, Tunisia Seal Several Cooperation Agreements

Morocco and Tunisia signed,  several cooperation agreements at the closing ceremony of the 16th Moroccan-Tunisian joint committee.

The 12 agreements covered the sectors of drinking water, renewable energies, environment, building and public works, as well as the parliamentary and religious fields.

Morocco’s Prime Minister Abbas El Fassi and his Tunisian peer Mohammed Ghannouchi, who co-chaired the closing ceremony, expressed their satisfaction at the positive results of this meeting.

Both officials also voiced their common will to implement the signed agreements and iron out the difficulties hindering the achievement of the fixed goals, as part of their bilateral cooperation and partnership.

Source: Agence Maghreb Arabe Press, 7 May 2010

First Arab Water Forum held in Riyadh, 16-19 November 2008

The 1st Arab Water Forum (AWF) was held at the King Fahd Cultural Centre in Riyadh, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, in conjunction with two other big events: the 3rd International Conference on Water Resources and Arid Environments, and the awards ceremony of the Prince Sultan Bin Abdulaziz International Prize for Water. The Arab Water Council (AWC) is set to organize Arab Water Forums (AWF) every three years prior to the World Water Forums to become the most important inclusive water-related event at the regional level. The objective of the AWFs is to mobilize all water stakeholders in the region, to identify priorities of water-related issues and define solutions that can successfully address regional and country specific water challenges.

The AWF comes only four months before the 5th World Water Forum (WWF5) that will be held in Istanbul on 16-22 March 2009 with the main theme “Bridging Divides for Water”. Hence, the AWF focussed on presenting and discussing the progress of the MENA/Arab Region’s preparatory processes towards the WWF5, for which the AWC acts as the regional coordinator.

The preparatory documents of 1st AWF are available on the Arab Water Council web site [please note that many of the links were broken on 22 Dec 2008].

The Water Demand Initiative for the Middle East and North Africa (WaDImena) presented progress and findings of its applied research and pilot projects at the AWF. See a list of presentations below:

• Water Governance in MENA Region InWent experience
• GICs in Tunisia – by A BelHassan
• Greywater reuse in Jordan – by N AlHmoud
• Greywater reuse in Lebanon – by Ghogassian
• Saline water use in Morocco – by M Chati
• Wastewater reuse in Palestine – by M AbuMadi
• Bridging divides bet rich & poor – by H Laamrani S AbdDayem K AbuZeid M Hefny
• Challenges of WDM in MENA – by H Laamrani
• Inwent experience in MENA – by V Detlef
• Theme 4 Governance and Management – by H Laamrani
• WDM Tunisian experience – A Hamdane
• WDM in Jordan

Source: IDRC, 27 Nov 2008