CAP Nador to save coastal natural wealth

Once again, human activity is substantially altering natural and biological richness and endangering the environment. Joint efforts in the Nador city, Northeastern Morocco, are involved in coastal management projects to preserve the nature’s beauty and secure a better future for the population.

Nadia Ben Sellam - Rabat, Al Hayat

200 km long coastline, enormous natural wealth and development capacities as well as various economic activities ranging from traditional fishing to agricultural production and coastal tourism… These are the major characteristics of the Northeastern province of Morocco, Nador. This area, well known for its natural and biological richness and scenic beauty, has experienced significant demographic and economic growth in recent years, resulting in the degradation of its environment. With a lack of coordination between the different economic sectors and a lack of adequate planning in coastal policies, unorganized human interference is expected to increase, leading thus to additional harm to environment.

In the framework of the EU-funded SMAP III (Short and Medium-Term Priority Environmental Action Programme) for the Mediterranean region, and with an integrated approach, CAP Nador project intends to take up those ecological challenges. Several partners are working towards this objective, one European: the Coastal and Marine Union (EUCC) (chief of project), and three Moroccan: the Ecole Nationale Forestière d’Ingénieurs (ENFI), the Commune Rurale de Boudinar and FUED (the Forum of Urbanism, Environment and Development). The overall budget of the project rises to 6 million Moroccan Dirham (about €550,000).

The project launched its activities with an analysis of the most important ecological and socio-economic problems of the area. The next step was to draft an action plan that aims at ensuring an efficient environment protection and promoting economic and social development of the coastline.

CAP Nador, a leading project in Morocco, covers the whole coastline of the province. Local partners participating in this initiative are endeavoring to multiply efforts and implement the entire project, as its success will make it an example to follow in other areas in the region that live the same ecological challenges.



Boudinar: an enclosed Mediterranean seaport
Erosion and other natural and environmental factors participated to the degradation of the quality of life in the area and to its isolation. Rural communities found themselves isolated in a land stretching on more than 64 km, with a 2.5 km unpaved road that links this rural area to the national main road. This is not the sole problem of the 10,000 inhabitants scattered in 14 communes. In fact, the rural community in this area awaits lots of initiatives to improve its quality of life. With the launch of this project, some changes have occurred. This is what Saidi Hussein, one of the village prominent figures, tried to explain: “we are working closely with the civil society and the inhabitants, mainly women and fishermen to improve the quality of life in our village”.

Three years after the launch of the third phase of the environmental regional programme SMAP (from 2006 to 2009) a lot of progress is already noticeable in Boudinar, Nador and Cap des Trois Fourches thanks to the coastal action plan drawn up for the Cap Nador province and announced as completed in a press conference held last May by the EC Delegation in Morocco together with the project Partners in the capital city of Morocco, Rabat. In cooperation with local organizations, Saidi is working on implementing some projects stipulated in the action plan such as the project of cheese production as well as the project of training fishermen to better maintain their fishing boats and preserve fish in special refrigerators. This action plan also covers other areas of concern in the region such as desertification, agriculture problems. The plan also foresees other projects that aim at planning for a better environmental quality, controlled urbanization and livelihood improvement.

Urbanization and threatened environment
Nador, with more than a quarter of a million inhabitants, and Cap des Trois Fourches were both included in the Ramsar list of wetlands of international importance for their biological and ecological wealth. However, anarchic urbanization, improper management of the coastal zone and unplanned touristic and industrial coastal activities all contributed to the degradation of the environmental quality of the lagoon. Head of the Forum of Urbanization, Environment and Development (FUED) in the region warns: “the long spit of dunes separating the Nador lagoon from the sea is in danger, jeopardizing thus the lagoon and the entire city”. The action plan foresees restoration of these dunes to put an end to coastal erosion and natural catastrophes and improve the overall scene of the lagoon. Four other projects target: improving the living conditions of traditional fishermen; developing fish farming; treatment of waste water and solid waste pollution; planned urbanization and organized tourism activities in the area. The same environmental challenges prevail in the Cap des Trois Fourches, a rocky peninsula that extends approximately 40 km into the Mediterranean Sea. The added problems in this area are the poverty of the rural population of Beni Chiker and the endangered wildlife and plantations threatened of extinction.



Major boost
The development of littoral and coastal roads alleviated the isolation of several areas in the Nador province. It also facilitated several economic projects such as the expansion of the port of Beni Ansar, in addition to the development of coastal touristic activities. This minimized as well the production of increased volumes of wastewater.

Communication and a well established cooperation mechanism are indeed necessary to overcome these issues and promote sustainable development in the area. In fact, this project is being implemented with the largest possible cooperation amongst stakeholders and local and regional actors, with a full support from the civil society and the population. Still, some legislative and institutional obstacles may obstruct the implementation of the project on the technical and economic levels. Abdul Latif al Khattabi, professor at the Ecole Nationale Forestière d’Ingénieurs and project coordinator stresses on the absence of a central coastal management unit responsible for managing and coordinating all coastal management activities. He also points that the long-awaited national law organizing coastal management is yet to be presented by the competent authorities. As an alternative, stakeholders have developed a unit within the Department of environment called “Cellule du Littoral” responsible for managing a national Integrated Coastal Zone Management strategy. Al Khattabi hopes “that this unit can provide some technical opinions on the coastal activities being executed and help find local or international financial resources for future ecological and socio-economic projects”.

Through the implementation of CAP Nador project, SMAP III programme would succeed in experimenting a major innovative initiative, the South Mediterranean coastline action plan, with the aim of linking this plan to the sustainable development policies anticipated for the coastal region. Only future will reveal the real efficiency of this trial.

N.B: Text translated from Arabic by Eurojar team