Researchers at the University of Almeria (UAL) are studying the potential of the north-eastern region of Morocco, currently an emerging agricultural area, for the agricultural auxiliary industry.
This is one of the conclusions reached at the conference devoted to presenting the results of the COOPTRUST project, funded by the European Border Cooperation Programme Spain-External Borders, which the UAL runs in partnership with the Almeriport Bay Foundation and two Moroccan institutions: the Regional Office of Agricultural Development of Moulouya, in Berkane, and the Mohammed I University, of Oujda.
COOPTRUST Project director, Fernando Aguilar, said that "this project is intended as a way to continue collaborating with Moroccan partners for the joint analysis and evaluation of the development of the flow of goods, products and services between Morocco and Almeria." Other sectors interested in this emerging market may be those devoted to freight, financial advisory services and/or technology, as well as energy services.
With regard to this line of work, researchers will publish a monograph on the evolution in the medium and long term, the agricultural production of north-eastern Morocco and its relationship with Almeria's agriculture, taking into account the potential economic complementaries for growth development on both sides. The feasibility of setting up a perishable logistics centre nearby the Port of Almeria will also be studied. This was all revealed in the press conference given by the Vice Chancellor for Internationalisation and Development Cooperation, Julian Cuevas, the President of the Port of Almeria, Trinidad Cabeo, and the coordinator of the working group at the University Mohammed I of Oujda, Mimoun Chourak.
Other lines of action of the project have focused on the development of a digital cartographic database based on the combination of multi-temporal images to create a digital elevation model of the lower basin of the river Moulouya. The integration of the digital map data and the implementation of the layers of cartographic information have been carried out in an Open Source GIS. Furthermore, an analysis has been made of the area's natural resources and their quality, and also a study on the impact of Morocco's production on Almeria's agricultural marketing sector, taking into account the various legal and economic factors that may affect the traffic of goods across Almeria.
Technical reports of a more transversal nature have also been made, including "The appreciation of water as a scarce and necessary resource for the development of the eastern region of Morocco" or the "Study on the psychosocial conditions of agricultural workers in the Triffa irrigated perimeter: Analysis and evaluation by the MPF method."
The COOPTRUST project (acronym for the words Collaboration, Opportunity and Trust) is based on the motto "Working together to give trust a chance." It aims to set the basis to improve the knowledge about Morocco's local environment as a first step to establish consistent cooperation programmes, to improve trust in the social and economic agents and, especially, to assess the progress made to achieve the goals set by the project.
Activities will focus on the irrigated areas of the North East region of Morocco, located in the Lower Moulouya, roughly between Nador and Berkane. The port of Nador (Beni Ansar) is particularly important, since it is a great hub for national and international trade in the region.