Morocco has announced a new national program to accelerate waste-water treatment and liquid sanitation projects across the country.
Officials said the initiative, which will see an investment of 5.6 billion U.S. dollars, reflects the North African country's commitment to addressing water scarcity and environmental protection while supporting economic development across urban and rural areas.
Morocco has always had issues with water management, but climate change and a recent drought brought home to many just how serious the problem was becoming. Now the government is looking to get ahead of it with an ambitious and expensive project that will equip 223 cities and urban centers with sanitation networks and waste-water treatment plants.
Morocco's Interior Minister Abdelouafi Laftit said the program will make it possible to reuse 100 million cubic meters of wastewater annually by 2027 and 537 million cubic meters by 2040.
The Moroccan government has been criticized in the past for serving some areas better than others. However, the scope of this plan aims to allow both affluent urban areas and less developed rural areas to benefit.
"Morocco has opted for proactive strategies to cope with growing water scarcity challenges and to achieve the equality for which his Majesty the King has called for. So, there is no place for Morocco moving at two speeds. There must be equal speed in developing rural areas as well as modernizing city infrastructure," said Mustafa Al Issat, a Moroccan environmental expert.
This plan aims to reduce pressure on conventional water resources by meeting the growing water demand. The treated wastewater is viewed as a strategy for water security.
It is also intended to play a crucial role in supporting the agricultural sector, which accounts for 85 percent of the North African country's water consumption.
Moroccan government launches 5.6-bln USD wastewater treatment program
A China-built hydropower station that has remained in operation for six decades in Guinea serves as a vivid illustration of the friendly cooperative relations between China and African countries, said Guinean Prime Minister Amadou Oury Bah in an exclusive interview with China Central Television (CCTV) earlier this week.
He spoke on the sidelines of the World Economic Forum's 17th Annual Meeting of the New Champions, which concluded Thursday in the northeastern Chinese city of Dalian.
On June 9, 1966, the Kinkon Hydropower Station, built by China International Water and Electric Corporation, a subsidiary of China Communications Construction Group Company Limited, was officially handed over to Guinea.
The project was a milestone for both Guinea and China. It was the first hydropower station completed in Guinea after independence and the first hydropower project delivered by China as a complete foreign aid package, with Chinese experts responsible for every stage of its development, from exploration and design to construction.
As a symbol of China-Guinea friendship, the Kinkon Hydropower Station has appeared twice on Guinea's 5,000-franc banknotes.
Located in the Pita Prefecture, where Bah's hometown is, the station has been a vital part of the region's development. And Bah himself has witnessed firsthand how it has transformed local life.
"What I want to say is that I grew up with the Kinkon Hydropower Station. It is located in the province where my hometown is. For the people of the Pita Prefecture, being able to have electricity and to serve as the source of power supply to surrounding cities is something to be proud of. To this day, the station is still in operation. After Guinea's independence, China was among the first countries to demonstrate the significance of China-Africa cooperation through concrete actions by building this hydropower station. This project is a vivid and tangible illustration of the friendly cooperative relations between China and African countries," said Bah.
Over the past six decades, the station, with an installed capacity of 3,400 kilowatts, has remained operational. Generating an average of 16 million kilowatt-hours of electricity annually, it has long supplied power to the prefectures of Pita, Labe, Dalaba and Mamou. Local residents refer to it as Guinea's "Pearl of the Night".
Hydropower station in Guinea stands as symbol of China-Africa friendly cooperation: Guinean PM
