RABAT: The Moroccan government is following through on its promises to turn the country green. As the only North African nation without oil, the push toward greener technology has put the country one step ahead of its fellow African and Middle Eastern nations. One of those major projects is a $9 billion solar energy initiative that could see nearly half of the country's energy needs met by 2025, government officials said. The project will consist of five solar power stations each producing some 2,000 MW of electricity in the regions of Ouarzazate, Ain Bni Mathar, Foum al-Oued, Boujdour and Sebkhat Tah. In a public statement on Mar. 31, the country’s Minister of Energy Amina Benkhadra said that this is “a bold but realistic project. We will guarantee all the technical and financial resources to make it succeed.†For many in the country, the cost of climate change is hindering their efforts. For one former fisherman, who moved to the country's capital to be closer to family last year after his small enterprise on the coast became “too difficult” to maintain, Amir Juma'a said that companies are not doing enough “to give us the waters we need.” He pointed to the dumping of chemicals and other waste from companies into the waters where he and his fellow fishermen had been working for years. “It made the water so unclean that the fish either died, moved on, or were so dirty that to eat them would have been dangerous,” he said. The government is not letting these corporations off the hook, however. One energy consultant working with the government said on condition of anonymity that for the first time, officials will conduct investigations into the illegal dumping of toxic waste. “If we find these companies at fault, we will issue a tax against them, which will then help finance other environmentally friendly projects across the country,” the official said. Most observers and experts have come out in favor of the idea, calling it “progressive.” As part of last week's Earth Day celebrations, mayors from across Africa, Europe and the Gulf converged on Rabat to see what the government is doing. Overall consensus was that Morocco has become a leader in green technology. Khalifa Sall, the mayor of Dakar, Senegal, said in comments carried by Al Jazeera that “We will study what Morocco is doing because right now we are witnessing a city [Dakar] that is losing its soul and is having a tough time becoming a green city. “We have a problem with water resources. Climate change has resulted in huge marine erosion.” But the flagship project is the solar project that the government believes will give Morocco energy independence within the next decade and a half. Along with the World Bank, Morocco is seeking partnerships with the European Commission and the Desertec coalition of 13 energy and technology companies planning to create a renewable energy grid that crosses Africa in order to ship such energy to Europe. In a nation that less than 20 years ago did not have enough electricity to reach two-thirds of the population, and today is just over 90 percent access, the move toward alternative sources of energy are seen as vital to the future of the North African nation. If Morocco can successfully create 40 percent of its energy by 2020 on solar power, Hammou Laamrani of the Cairo-based International Development Research Center said “imagine if they threw in wind farms and other renewable resources? The country could really be moving forward and Europe will have to take notice.†Solar power is not new to Morocco, with one station already functioning in Tangiers off solar panels and another near Tarfaya. The country is also looking to establish a number of wind farms along the Atlantic coast in an effort to immediately trim its energy costs. There are worries, however, with corruption high in the country “it may be hard to convince international donors to give large sums of money without certain guarantees,†one official said. For now, the green project has started with a flourish and the government hopes it will show the world that it is a viable leader for others to emulate. BM
